Week of April 23rd, 2023
One bus ride down the mountains from the Cameron Highlands brought me back to Kuala Lumpur. On my return to KL, I chose to end my trip at Kuala Lumpur Sentral instead of going to TBS (Terminal Bersepadu Selatan), the main bus terminal. Each time I visit KL Sentral, I’m impressed with how ridiculously well-organized the station is considering its size and the numerous modes of transit that connect here. It feels more like a nice airport than a regular train station in the middle of the city – the taxi/rideshare area is one of the best I’ve ever seen and is so organized and convenient to use. I’m a bit of a transit dork, so I could go on and on about this station for a long time but that’s not what you’re here for. You’re here to find out what I did this week!
Monday was my day of rest and relaxation after a really fun weekend in the Cameron Highlands, but I couldn’t rest too much since this was my last week in Kuala Lumpur. I would be leaving the city on Thursday for Penang and I needed to get a few sights in before I leave. I’ve been to KL before, so there were only a few locations I’d yet to see that I had yet to explore. I had three priorities – the Batu Caves, KLCC and the light show, and the Perdana Botanical Gardens and KL Butterfly Park.
Midday Tuesday, armed with allergy medication in my system and my trusty water bottle, I headed out to the Perdana Botanical Gardens instead. I’m allergic to most flowers, plants, and trees but I absolutely love botanical gardens and seeing all of the cool and local species of flora (and sometimes fauna). I might not be the most outdoorsy person, but there’s just something magical about being in the middle of the city and surrounded by nature that makes my heart feel both full and light.
Although I went solo, my mom inadvertently took a tour of the botanical gardens with me – we were on the phone on my way to the gardens and just ended up talking for 2 or so hours as I walked through the gardens and described everything to her. We do this more often than is probably normal, especially considering it was the middle of the night her time. *facepalm*. Considering that the gardens are completely free, they are quite nice and expansive. However, some areas can definitely use a little more TLC – they may want to consider charging a nominal fee to improve the upkeep.
The heat and humidity, more than the sun rays, can be brutal in Kuala Lumpur but this was one of the rare days, during my time in KL, where it was sunny for more than an hour at a time. So I was extremely thankful to find an awning midway through the gardens to get a reprieve from the weather. Next to the awning is a cute lake that’s home to some fish and, likely, some other water creatures. I spent a few moments just taking in the view of the pond and the KL Sentral CBD in the distance. Under the awning, I caught a glimpse of this gorgeous blue-winged bird that graciously allowed me to get within a few feet of it so I could get a decent picture – I am no ornithologist so I have no idea what it’s called other than a “pretty blue bird”. Ha.
I had a blast going through the Perdana Botanical Gardens, but it was getting unbearably hot – no amount of water and shade could combat the pure torture that was being outside. Being outside was simply not fun anymore, so I quickly made my way to the orchid and hibiscus gardens. While everything else had been super easy for me to find, I couldn’t figure out where the orchids were to save my life and I soon figured out why. Long story short, I finally found a back way to the orchid and hibiscus gardens, but my joy was short-lived when a security guard yelled at me that the exhibit was closed. 🙁
I prioritized the botanical garden because of the orchids, so I was really disappointed to see that both the hibiscus and orchid gardens were closed. Before getting kicked out of the area, I did get to see the orchids and hibiscus that were there, but let’s just say that they were far from “show-ready”. I would say if you’re going to Kuala Lumpur and Singapore on the same trip, then Singapore’s Botanic Garden is by far the better choice for Orchid lovers and in general. Singapore Botanic Garden is the best botanical garden I’ve ever been to and one of the best in the world, so this is an unfair comparison.
However, if you live in KL or plan on staying for a while, the Perdana Botanical Gardens is such a nice place to go regularly that’s far less touristy than, KLCC Park. I saw a lot of families exploring the grounds, I also saw not one but three couples in the park taking wedding photos. It’s a serene Urban park with beautiful flora, a peaceful lake and it even has a deer park. Unfortunately, the deer park is one of the areas, as I mentioned earlier, that definitely needs better maintenance. Other than the deer, the grounds of the Perdana Botanical Gardens are also home to the Kuala Lumpur Bird Park, the world’s largest covered aviary, and Kuala Lumpur Butterfly Park.
I considered visiting the bird park, but I couldn’t stand the heat any longer, so I just headed straight to the butterfly park. I’m not generally a fan of flying insects or insects in general, but butterflies are definitely the exception to that rule. I was so excited to see the butterfly garden and it did not disappoint! For international visitors, the Kuala Lumpur Butterfly Park is only 22MYR (~$5 USD) for adults and 11MYR (~$2.50) for kids. Although it looks tiny from the outside of the entrance, the butterfly park is a fair size. The added bonus is that the canopies above give somewhat of a reprieve from the heat and sun (but not the humidity, unfortunately).
Most, if not all, of the butterflies here are native to the region so you definitely won’t be seeing any monarch butterflies here. One thing you can tell from the patterning is that these butterflies are meant for jungle camouflage – most of them are green, brown, or other dark neutral tones meant for blending in with their surroundings. I was a little surprised to see a few black and blue butterflies as blue is such a rare color to find in nature. Two of my favorite butterflies at the park were these huge black butterflies, one with blue markings and one with yellow markings that liked to rest at the top of the enclosure. I just liked how chill they are and that they hid in plain sight instead of using up all of their energy buzzing around – I guess they’re my spirit butterflies.
Walking around the butterfly park was a bit of a maze – around every little corner, you’d see certain butterfly species congregating while enjoying their preferred flora. The butterfly park was well maintained and the butterflies seemed to be well cared for. Throughout the garden, there were butterfly feeding stations with hibiscuses that are regularly sprayed with honey water to help supplement the nutrition of the butterflies…just in case the flowers in the garden weren’t enough for them. The butterfly park gives a “secret garden” vibe with cute seating areas for guests to sit and relax while watching the butterflies flutter by and well-groomed flora everywhere – I definitely could have spent several hours here!
I went to the upper level of the butterfly garden to relax on the bench, and shortly after sitting down, I noticed that a butterfly had landed on my back. I’m sure it was just attracted to my sweaty smell and soaking wet green t-shirt, but a part of me wants to believe that it was Kismet. That butterfly stayed on my back for almost 10 minutes, even when I got up momentarily to take a picture – it was a true Disney princess moment. I would have stayed there for as long as it would let me, but I inadvertently scared it away when I stood up abruptly to avoid ants crawling on me.
Shockingly, it came back a few minutes late and let its presence be known – in the most aggressive way possible by flying into my face twice before landing on a branch nearby. I had jokingly said in the last few months that every random butterfly that crossed my path was a little sign from my grandmother, who died several years ago, but this time it felt like a literal smack in my face. Ha. I’m not very sentimental nor superstitious, but I do “bring” my grandmother with me in the form of the purple ribbon from her funeral – I loved my grandmother immensely, so this is my small way of showing her the world.
The butterfly, that I’ve since named Mary Elizabeth, and I had a heart-to-heart before I decided it was time to leave. I was getting hungry and the forecast called for rain that afternoon that I did not want to get caught in. I didn’t realize that the butterfly park also had an insectarium inside – I discovered that when I turned around and realized there were cases of giant beetles, mantes, and scorpions moving behind me. Once the spike in my heart rate subsided, I found it intriguing to take a closer look at these insects that I would have never wanted to come face to face with “in the wild”. The walls of the insectarium are covered in specimens of various insects and arachnids, from butterflies to mantes to spiders all grouped by category or region.
After checking out the specimen, I headed out at the perfect time because it started to rain almost as soon as I got back home. With only one day left in KL, I decided to book an Airbnb experience for the next day (Wednesday) that seemed intriguing. Ummi of Ummi Goes Where? hosts a highly-rated Personal Guide for Introverts/Solo Travelers that takes you around KL, including Batu Caves, Chinatown, Central Market, Sultan Abdul Samad building, River of Life, Masjid Jamek, and Merdeka Square. It’s customizable, so she agreed to meet a little earlier and add a quick visit to KLCC to the itinerary which was really appreciated. I love that she’s a Malaysian local who is also an avid traveler (check her out on IG)! I felt like this would be a great option for me because I also travel a lot…but not as much as Ummi!
Wednesday afternoon, I made my way to KL Sentral to meet up with Ummi and after some quick introductions, we headed out on the train to start the tour. Aside from the catchy branding as a solo tour for Introverts, I really wanted to do this tour with Ummi because we’d be getting around via public transit. I personally feel that you get a better feel of a city when you take public transit instead of doing a bus tour or even driving around. We started the tour at the Central Market, which is a former produce market that has been repurposed as a craft market for local vendors to sell their wares. One thing I’d like to check out the next time I’m in KL is the painting studio that lets you paint your own Batik tapestry!
Soon we made our way to the River of Life meeting point (Kolam Biru) where Ummi explained to me the meaning of Kuala Lumpur. Apparently, Kuala Lumpur means muddy confluence because the city was founded where the Klang River and Gombak Rivers meet. At the time of its founding, it was almost impossible to navigate the muddy rivers north of this meeting point by boat, so Kuala Lumpur became a stopping point and center of trade for the tin and rubber miners. At night, Kolam Biru is lit up with lights along the rivers so that makes for a cute Instagrammable spot.
Directly in front of Kolam Biru is the beautifully crafted Masjid Jamek Sultan Abdul Samad Mosque. It has a distinctly Moorish architectural style that serves as a nice contrast to the modern buildings that surround it on one side and the Klang and Gombak rivers on the other side. We walked around the mosque towards Merdeka Square, also known as Independence Square, which is a huge public square that is actually the first place that Malaysia’s separation from the United Kingdom was marked. Today the square serves as a central gathering place for celebrations and holidays.
On one side of Merdeka Square you’ll find the historic Royal Selangor Club, which previously used Merdeka Square as its cricket green, and on the other side (across the street) you’ll find the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, a government building with beautiful Moorish architecture featuring an iconic clock tower. On the south end of the square is the 95-foot flag tower/pole which is the largest in Malaysia and one of the largest in the world. There’s so much to see in this area, and we only scratched the surface on this tour – the one-mile radius of Merdeka Square hold so much of KL’s history and tourist attractions!
After taking pictures at the “I Love KL” statue, we made our way to Chinatown and explored the amazing street art that’s sprinkled throughout. It was definitely one of the highlights of the tour – I’ve been to many Chinatowns during my travels and this is definitely one of the best that I’ve been to along with Penang’s which I got to explore later in the week. One thing that made them both stand out is the “living art” that they both have featured. KL and Penang both have street art in their Chinatowns that feature murals with 3-D aspects that are tied into the building or nature that already existed around them and I love that!
After checking out the art we headed to see the famous Petaling Street Market. It’s like a huge outdoor street market that’s filled with vendors selling everything from food to clothes to knockoff Gucci slides. According to Ummi, in the daytime, it’s pretty average and sane but at night it’s packed and there are even more stores crammed into the street. While I’ve never been at night, I can definitely imagine it being packed at night when the sun has gone down and the temperatures are a bit cooler. After walking through the markets, we headed back to KL Sentral so we could catch the KMUTER train from the city center to the Batu Caves.
The Batu Caves, although otherworldly, are only about 10 miles away from the center of KL – they’re actually 4 times closer to the city than the airport is! However, be warned, there are monkeys everywhere at the Batu Caves and they can be rude – one little monkey tried to steal the drink that I had just bought a few minutes before. The monkeys have gotten way too used to people feeding them so they’ve become quite aggressive. They are super cute and I love seeing them with their babies, but I’ve had multiple encounters with monkeys during my travels and I much prefer them at a distance…
The Batu Caves are limestone caves that are said to be 400 million years old – they are exactly as you would imagine but way cooler to see in person. The Batu Caves and the Murugan statue that sits next to the stairs both have religious significance for the Tamil Indians and many make an annual pilgrimage here during Thaipusam. While the stairs and the statue are both relatively new, the caves have been around for millions of years and have been utilized by Malays and Chinese before it was ever used as an Indian Shrine.
After I took some pictures, we slowly made our way up the 200 steps to the entrance of the caves. A quarter way up, I seriously rethought my decision but pressed on because I’m not a quitter – it doesn’t matter how in shape you are, stairs will take you out every single time. Ha! It’s definitely worth it to actually go to the top and enter the caves. You’ll see an Indian shrine on the left and a few stands selling snacks and souvenirs on the right, but the main cave is relatively untouched. We walked around for a bit, but I did not go up the second set of stairs where the cave was open to the elements, mainly because it had started to rain outside.
Armed with rain jackets, we foolishly headed back down all 200 steps in the pouring rain. I figured it would be fine since we had ponchos but I was wrong – very wrong. My Anorak rain jacket was no match for the driving rain that came down on us, and I was soaking wet by the time we got to the bottom. Thankfully, Ummi was mostly okay because her poncho provided far more coverage. Usually, the tour would end with us heading back to KL Sentral, but I had previously requested that we end at KLCC because I wanted to go to Saloma Link Bridge and KLCC Park.
We made our way back into the city and headed to the Saloma Link Bridge (Pintasan Saloma) first. The bridge was created as a way to quickly link Kampung Baru with Kuala Lumpur City Center (KLCC). Although it serves a practical purpose, it’s mostly known for being an Instagrammable bridge that’s especially nice at night. Lol. Ummi did a mini photo shoot of me at the bridge and the, far too-crowded, Petronas Towers. She should definitely consider doing a photography tour of KL as well, I learned a few tips and tricks from her – like the trick where you turn your phone upside down to get a longer exposure so you can get tall buildings in your photos without moving backward or doing a sideways panorama!
I highly recommend you check out Ummi’s tour if you’re solo and find yourself in KL – it definitely felt more like hanging out with a friend who is a local than going on a stuffy tour. Unfortunately for Ummi, I talked her ear off for the entire tour but she has an oddly therapeutic nature to her (and I need to socialize more). Ummi and I hugged and parted at Suria KLCC mall – she headed home while I headed upstairs to watch The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Against my better judgment, I insisted on going to see the movie because I wanted to finally try out the beanbag movie theater chairs and I needed to kill a few hours before the light show at KLCC Park. So, that’s how I ended up spending two hours in the AC with damp clothes on – I do not recommend that…at all.
I enjoyed the movie and it was hilarious, but it’s definitely giving “Wreck it Ralph” vibes – Bowser, Toad, and Lumalee were definitely the “stars” of this movie to me. The beanbag chairs, which were clearly meant for two people to cuddle, were quite nice but not necessarily an experience I need to have again. I meant to go to Books Kinokuniya Malaysia, where Ummi’s partner works but I was tired and still needed to go home to finish packing. Since this was my last night in KL, I decided to end it with the Lake Symphony Light and Sound Water Show outside in front of Suria KLCC mall. I quite enjoyed the show – it’s definitely a nice way to end a touristy day.
This night and the night prior, I had random pain going down my right leg when I lay down, but I just ignored it. By the morning, I couldn’t ignore the fact that I was clearly not feeling well – something was off. My knee was absolutely killing me, I was feeling feverish, and at one point I got really dizzy. I took a Tylenol and that made me feel a lot better – at least well enough to head to KL Sentral to catch my train to Penang. My knee was still killing me the entire time so I wore my knee brace the rest of the day.
I had previously decided to treat myself to the KTM ETS business class train cabin going from KL (Sentral) to Penang (Butterworth) instead of flying. Even with the premium of business class, it’s a less expensive option than flying, especially when you factor in baggage. There was plenty of storage for my luggage, and the seats were a good size with plenty of leg room and footrests. They served us food not once but twice – the first meal was a chicken curry with rice and vegetables, and the second was an afternoon tea with snacks. In my opinion, it’s definitely a better option than taking the plane unless you’re in a time crunch and even then you’d only save an hour or so. The only major downside was that I arrived in Butterworth during rush hour and it took over an hour for me to get from Butterworth Station to my Airbnb in George Town on Penang Island.
By the end of the night Thursday, the Tylenol wore off and I was feeling horrible again – something wasn’t right. I’ve had more than my fair share of fevers before and arthritic moments, but this was the worst knee pain I’d ever had and my whole body felt like it was on fire. I didn’t feel much better when I woke up Friday so I decided to just get some food and go back to bed to enjoy the beautiful view from my window. I would love to say that the highlight of my time in Penang was hanging out at the beach, exploring the city, doing a nature hike, or heading over to Langkawi, but it was just food and eating…which isn’t so bad.
The building, Tropicana 218 McAlister, has a few eateries on the main level, so I went out to grab some provisions from Instea (Bubble Tea) and Love a Loaf (Bakery). They were both instant hits for me and I ended up getting food from those two cafes all weekend. If you’ve ever been to Sweet Hut in Atlanta, then that’s what these two restaurants would be like if they had a baby. Lol. Instea definitely gives you an elevated bubble tea shop experience, with tea baristas and signature drinks that you can purchase in large perfume bottles. Love a Loaf has baked goods galore with all kinds of Asian and European-style baked goods for you to enjoy.
Saturday I was feeling a little better, and I was well enough to head out to do a food tour in George Town. I love doing food tours because I feel like you get the best parts of a walking tour and the best parts of eating in a new locale combined. The food tour company, Heritage on a Plate, was not in operation at this time due to the holidays, so they directed me to Simply Enak, which I booked last minute. Simply Enak has tours in KL and Penang (and even virtual), but I ended up doing the late afternoon/evening tour called Eat Drink George Town.
While waiting for my tour guide, Grace, to arrive I snapped some pictures of the gorgeous Masjid Kapitan Keling Mosque and explored the mosque grounds. Masjid Kapitan Keling is unique because it’s not only an Indian Muslim mosque but it was the first permanent mosque in the area. Once my tour guide and the rest of the guests arrived, we headed out to explore the sights and foods of George Town, a Unesco world heritage site. Malaysia as a whole, and Penang specifically is quite ethnically diverse so the food reflects that. Apparently, a lot of people from around the country come to Penang just to eat.
We had a great time walking around George Town and checking out the street art while we ate everything from my personal favorite, Rendang Chicken Satay at Gudang Cafe, to Chinese desserts that I don’t remember the name of to amazing Indian food at Restoran Daun Pisang. We had a little bit of everything – Char Kway Teow, Laksa, Tandoor Chicken, Gyoza, Roti Canai, Cendol, and much more! I even got to try Murtabak again, which I had 3 years prior on a Singapore food tour. I honestly don’t know nor remember the name of half of the places that we went to, so you’ll just have to go try the tour yourself! That’s one “downside” of joining a food tour – you get so wrapped up in enjoying yourself that you don’t take note of the name of any of the places you go to.
In keeping with the cultural experience, this tour also takes you to some of the significant cultural and religious locations in George Town, including the Clan Jetties. The Clan Jetties were first populated by Chinese immigrants in the 19th century as a means of affordable housing. Nowadays, the jetties are a major tourist attraction but are still inhabited by many locals, primarily of Chinese descent. The area around the jetties grew and formed Penang’s Chinatown much like you’d find in any other city with a large Chinese immigrant population. Not too far away from Chinatown is Little India where we ended our night with some delicious food, but not before grabbing drinks.
Normally, the night ends with a complimentary cocktail and rice wine tasting, but the rain changed our plans so we headed to China House first to grab drinks and taste various rice wines. I had a great time on the tour and enjoyed connecting with the other people on the tour, who were all Australian (but they didn’t come to the tour together) – they were hilarious and a treat to be around! One older gentleman and I chatted a lot during the tour and I found out that his daughter is also planning to move to Europe this year, so I got his information so I could connect with his daughter. This is one reason I love traveling solo or with a small group because you really get to connect with the people you meet while you’re out.
Unfortunately, I was starting to feel worn down again by night’s end – a combination of feeling ill, the rice wine, and the medication from earlier probably. The rest of my weekend was once again spent just resting and relaxing, between the rainy weather and my body that’s all I felt up to doing. Sometimes your body just doesn’t care what you want, it’s going to do what it needs to do but that’s okay because my priority was to save my energy so I could feel well enough to leave on Monday for Bangkok! Penang is a whole vibe – it’s definitely somewhere I’d like to visit again and next time I’ll eat more, see more, and do more! This was the first time during my sabbatical that I was really sick, not recovering from my ankle injury or my own body hating me, so this was bound to happen.