Petronas Towers, a modern landmark
Emerging as one of the stronger ASEAN capitals, Kuala Lumpur, along with its neighbor Singapore, has been praised for being one of those functional and "the system is working" type of cities which balance steady economic growth with infrastructure development for the people. KL offers a balanced and attractive working environment, positive enough to draw foreigners not just to invest in KL but to actually work and base themselves in KL. The comparison to KL (and Singapore) by my own city, Manila, often ends in shaking heads and puzzlement - how could such growth have been possible and how Manila could "catch up".
For me, this is all "meaningless" in the travel-culture sense and I knew nothing and expected nothing from KL, except that I saw it as a place that's probably similar to Singapore but with "more culture per capita". A long-layover last December allowed me to see if this is so...
For me, this is all "meaningless" in the travel-culture sense and I knew nothing and expected nothing from KL, except that I saw it as a place that's probably similar to Singapore but with "more culture per capita". A long-layover last December allowed me to see if this is so...
Manila to Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur to London.
Trying to go back to "my scientific life" in Europe after a nice (but bureaucratic-filled) 1.5 month break in Manila, I decided to schedule it such that I would have a long stop-over in a manageable city I haven't visited (the explorer in me couldn't resist--so much exploration in foreign Europe, so little exploration back in mother Asia). KL provided that option along with a reasonable fair I got from Malaysian airlines (and their direct flight to London) and it was solved.
I land in KL at 10.35AM and fly out at 23.55PM. Give or take an hour of processes and waiting for landing and departure, I had, more or less, 10 hours to do my thing. Maybe it's enough, maybe it's not, I thought but I'll make do. More than anything, online research tells me that there is little by way of "touristic draws" in the city so I might well just focus my attention on the food (ME WANT STEAMING BOWL OF LAKSA - my inner beast). I decided to just go there, balance it all out and wing it. It worked, in my opinion, with enough time for shopping.
Trying to go back to "my scientific life" in Europe after a nice (but bureaucratic-filled) 1.5 month break in Manila, I decided to schedule it such that I would have a long stop-over in a manageable city I haven't visited (the explorer in me couldn't resist--so much exploration in foreign Europe, so little exploration back in mother Asia). KL provided that option along with a reasonable fair I got from Malaysian airlines (and their direct flight to London) and it was solved.
I land in KL at 10.35AM and fly out at 23.55PM. Give or take an hour of processes and waiting for landing and departure, I had, more or less, 10 hours to do my thing. Maybe it's enough, maybe it's not, I thought but I'll make do. More than anything, online research tells me that there is little by way of "touristic draws" in the city so I might well just focus my attention on the food (ME WANT STEAMING BOWL OF LAKSA - my inner beast). I decided to just go there, balance it all out and wing it. It worked, in my opinion, with enough time for shopping.
| Time: Around 11AM I arrived smoothly from the first leg of my flight (Manila-KL), the bitter taste of NAIA Terminal 1 still lingering in my palate. I need this break. KL International Airport is easy enough to navigate (read: first-world) and after getting some cash and depositing my luggage, I called myself ready. Aboard the (expensive) express train that goes straight to KL Sentraal, I got my first glimpse of Malaysia and my first appreciation of how KL grew out a jungle. I have a penchant for cities with "natural beauty" and how "early people chose to settle there" despite how f***ed up the city might look like now. Naples, with its dramatic coastline and Mt. Vesuvius looming nearby, comes to mind. Manila is another. KL is not in that category. KL Sentraal proves to be what a central station SHOULD be - lots of people transiting but orderly, not far off from the standard of "civilization" set by London's Kings' Cross, for example. I learned that Secret Recipe while somewhat "posh" in Manila is just like Goldilocks here. I learned that while Malaysians are good in English, one still needs to "make them code switch" as in Germany and other countries which do have the English proficiency but no real desire to speak it when they don't have to. | Yes, despite all the conveniences I've experienced so far (a lot compared to what one would get in Manila tbh), though also with the fact that I PAID FOR THEM, in mind, I still felt a bit off - mostly from how advanced "our Malay brothers" have come compared to us. Where have things gone wrong? This will probably haunt me for the rest of the day - Laksa or no Laksa. |
| | Time: Around 12PM My feet brought me to Chinatown, the most culturally interesting district in KL and a must-visit to survey the city's culinary offerings. Thinking of lunch already, I decided to go on, take the metro and walk my way to Petaling street where a sea of vendors selling street food, fruits and vegetables, clothes and other random stuff await. This is Asia at its best, in my opinion. The markets where people are alive, exchange happens quickly almost reminiscent of barter (in previous times), good food waiting to be found with no frills. And no matter how "touristy" Petaling street is (given that all lousy visitors like myself go here for the "cliché"), this vibe still persists. Already hungry, I gave in and decided to buy a couple of pastries from a bakeshop near the station. This is as culinarily important as buying from Mister Donut but, hey, this "Mister Donut" can't be found back home. I got something remarkably similar to an empanada and a bread slathered with pork floss (so cheap here. Bread Talk is such a cheat!). Citing Anthony Bourdain, the world feels like a better place. I had no attraction for the fruits on offer, these are all indigenous to the region and could be found back home. What I was in need of was real Malaysian food and after walking a bit in Chinatown, I found my temple. |
| Time: Between 1 and 1.30 PM I found my Malaysian food temple in the form of this open foodcourt with lots of stalls selling various stuff. The flock of Caucasians at the front didn't scare me - tourist trap or not, this seems authentic. True enough, most of the residents inside were actually locals (Indians, Malays, Chinese some of which look like Filipinos) ranging from students to office workers to grandparents. Some go for take-out (as in a real carinderia) while most settle in the communal dining tables after ordering, awaiting for their lunches. I skipped what is akin to a Filipino turo-turo, where one chooses from dishes laid out in warmer trays. One gets a plate, fills it (one-time only, not a buffet) and pays at the counter. The food is interesting but I find very close similarities to ulam back home. I already had my mind bent on trying something more Malaysian, like Laksa or something, but they didn't seem to have it. Well, this is Chinatown, I thought, so I settled for the Chinese option of duck noodles. While it was good and filling, it didn't fully satisfy my "soulful" craving of something Malaysian and it just felt like eating something Chinese. | Finally, my eyes laid upon an Indian stall ran by an Indian husband and wife. They had the options I was looking for including the elusive Laksa! Alas, I was already full and probably couldn't take any more soup. Still, to big of an opportunity to skip, I decided to get a murtabak which is basically a "sandwich" of hand-rolled roti canai (Indian-inspired flatbread) stuffed with one's choice of curry (mutton/lamb in my case). This is skillfully folded into a square parcel and cooked on a hotplate and served with more curry sauce. Yum! The curry flavors are punchy and intense, the way I like it, and the entire murtabak assembly just screams "dude food" and is worthy of making it into an Asian gastro-pub menu. I decided I was happy in finding this and packed the rest of murtabak with me as a quick merienda or snack for the rest of my KL adventure. |
| | Time: Around 3PM I needed to walk-off my lunch-and-a-half courtesy of the food stalls. Petaling street no longer withold anything from me so I surged ahead thoughts on finding some mosques nearby to appreciate Islamic architecture and then eventually make my way to the subway which would lead me to Batu caves. As fate has it, there was little of the former to explore and a simple option to go to the latter just presented itself in the form of a bus which stopped right in front of me. So I took the bus, nothing special - almost like ones I would take along EDSA from Makati to Shaw. While my "chinese looks" would have allowed me to blend seamlessly into the crowd, my huge camera, beach fedora and general attire read tourist all the way. It took us about 40-45 minutes to reach the Batu caves, which were located in the suburban outskirts of KL (I feel asleep at some point in the ride). Local traffic, as I would learn, is quite heavy even in the early afternoon as we snaked our way from Chinatown to the northern mountains. But it got me there with little thought process so no real loss. |
| Time: Around 4PM Welcomed by an archway decorated by Hindu motifs, I arrived at the Batu caves - easily the most important cultural and touristic draw in KL. Given that I intended to be back at the airport by 9PM and I still wanted to catch sight of the Petronas Towers, I decided I had 2 hours to explore the place. I bought a big bottle of a refreshing drink at a convenience and store (in prep for the climb - I did my research) and headed my way. The entrance to the cave proper is lorded by a huge golden statue of Lord Murugan, of Hindu significance. The caves themselves are important pilgrimage sites for Hindi with temples located inside the caves and a famous festival (Thaipusam) held annually. The golden statue is huge and impressive but, make no mistake, is a modern construction having only been erected in 2006 and took 3 years to construct. To reach the caves themselves, one has to conquer 272 steps, which is probably a breeze for those who are fit - not for me. I took one long break in middle, hydrated and watched huge Hindi women overtake me (one even hustled me into racing her). They were persistent, I was tired (and had a long flight ahead) so I took things slowly. | Inside, the cave is fitted with various worship areas and a Hindu worship ceremony was actually about to start when I came. Beyond the antechamber, there is a closed area which opens naturally to the sky filled with vegetation. Monkeys can be found climbing in the rock formations here. Over-all, the cave is, well, a cave but what's special is the feel of holiness one gets upon entering it (particularly after the exhausting climb) and feeling of being surrounded by nature and culture just an hour away from modern civilization. |
| | Time: Between 5.30 and 6PM Already exhausted, I was on a commuter train headed back to KL Sentraal. I finished the rest of murtabak before boarding and fell into an aircon-induced sleep (the train was so cold). I was ready to call it a day but I had one last stop in my itinerary - The Petronas Towers. Symbol of modern Malaysia and the height of their economic progress and used to be tallest building in the world until it was surpassed by Taipei 101 in 2004, there was no way I was gonna visit KL without taking a photo of it. And so I surged through another metro ride which brought me to near the towers. |
| Time: Around 6PM Exhausted, I catch my glimpse of the towers and the nearby KL Tower (obviously patterned from similar buildings in Japan - such as the Tokyo Tower). While I'm no connoisseur of modern buildings and architecture (favoring appreciation of old heritage), the towers are no less impressive. After taking photos outside and watching people take photos outside, I decided I'd go in, just for kicks, though I with a mind to skip the "touristy" trip up to the top of the tower (I mean, do I really need to?). And so I did enter and was surprisingly immersed in another of modern Malaysian passions - shopping, the inside of tower base being a huge (and luxurious) shopping mall. While I would normally favor killing myself for the cultural, I decided that it would not be a trip to Malaysia without shopping and going to the mall so I took some time actually wandering around. I got my Gong Cha milk tea fix (another "specialty" that is "indigenous" to the region - if you know what I mean) and went window shopping. This is what Malaysians do. Heck, this is also what Filipinos do (whether we have money or not). But Malaysia beats us in terms of luxury, at least as far as what my eyes could see - the mall breathed more luxury than any of what I've been to in Manila (move over Serendra). This is Malaysia. | |
Seafood laksa at the airport. My last bite.
Time: Around 7.30PM
I have barely exhausted my 10 hours in Kuala Lumpur yet I was already exhausted myself and wanting to return to the airport. Its not as if one would be any less stressed there, especially if one has the same predicament as me: long-haul flight and cold weather at the destination looming ahead, but at least one could avoid the mess of figuring out a way back in time just in case things don't go well.
I took a last look at the tower, a last look at Malaysia, headed back to KL Sentraal and got another (expensive) express train to the airport. On my way back I had nothing to see but darkness and the occasional flit of a light or two. I had a book to read but I wasn't in the mood. I was reflecting.
After all of this, is Malaysia any different from Singapore? From the Philippines? I've seen a Kuala Lumpur that I never imagined, given my limited anticipation of the trip. Sure, nothing was so extraordinary - I've been to a market, a cave, a tall building but does anything lie beyond what I saw.
I expected to find food that was truly Malay, I was going to Malaysia after all but found myself eating a bowl of Chinese noodles and a flatbread stuffed with Indian curry. Even laksa, the dish one truly seeks in Malaysia, can it be called fully Malay? Does something fully Malay exist in this country? Culinarily, I doubt it - the influences all just meld from several years of trade and co-existence back when this land was still the land of the Malays and not, as it is now, the land of the Malaysians who could be of Malay, Chinese or Indian (often Tamil) descent. In fact, with the influx of foreign people, westerners in particular, this might well change in the future in the emergence of KL as a global city. And with this, KL becomes no different than Singapore - and I mean this in a neutral way.
Does KL have "more culture per capita" then Singapore? In a sense, yes - in some sense, no. There is probably more to be had in Kuala Lumpur by way of "authentic experience" and temples, mosques and those kind of things but it is all swimming, gritty entities that they are, in a matrix of development and progress that, as with everywhere else in the world, threatens to swallow heritage, it might seem. Then, are any more of our countries any more different?
Does KL have anything on Manila? Are we really so far behind? The hopeful me says NO - we are not than far behind, they have nothing on us. While KL is at "that level" now - economically, internationally, it is nothing that good governance from our country cannot restore. And I don't mean this in a demeaning way for KL, more than anything, I think we have everything to learn from KL and Malaysia - in their rise from a British colony to an economic center in Southeast Asia.
Obviously, all these insights are based merely on a less than 10-hour scratching of the surface of what Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur have to offer. But now I can say that I've been there and I've learned some things. And while I'm seemingly ending this article on a largely reflective moment (which is what happens in real-life for me, post-exhaustion), I wish to conclude with my last bite in Kuala Lumpur.
Time: 8:30PM
My time in KL is almost up but I decided to check out the airport café for one last meal. There are various dining options but none seemed suitable except for what I found in the food lounge, SEAFOOD LAKSA. Fine, it's from the airport and, fine, there wasn't really any fresh seafood in it but it was good. The laksa was good. It might be in a detached context, it might be far from tradition but good laksa is good laksa - good food is good food.
Will I come back to KL or Malaysia, in general? Probably not soon. But when I do, I'll surely try to get good laksa again.
I have barely exhausted my 10 hours in Kuala Lumpur yet I was already exhausted myself and wanting to return to the airport. Its not as if one would be any less stressed there, especially if one has the same predicament as me: long-haul flight and cold weather at the destination looming ahead, but at least one could avoid the mess of figuring out a way back in time just in case things don't go well.
I took a last look at the tower, a last look at Malaysia, headed back to KL Sentraal and got another (expensive) express train to the airport. On my way back I had nothing to see but darkness and the occasional flit of a light or two. I had a book to read but I wasn't in the mood. I was reflecting.
After all of this, is Malaysia any different from Singapore? From the Philippines? I've seen a Kuala Lumpur that I never imagined, given my limited anticipation of the trip. Sure, nothing was so extraordinary - I've been to a market, a cave, a tall building but does anything lie beyond what I saw.
I expected to find food that was truly Malay, I was going to Malaysia after all but found myself eating a bowl of Chinese noodles and a flatbread stuffed with Indian curry. Even laksa, the dish one truly seeks in Malaysia, can it be called fully Malay? Does something fully Malay exist in this country? Culinarily, I doubt it - the influences all just meld from several years of trade and co-existence back when this land was still the land of the Malays and not, as it is now, the land of the Malaysians who could be of Malay, Chinese or Indian (often Tamil) descent. In fact, with the influx of foreign people, westerners in particular, this might well change in the future in the emergence of KL as a global city. And with this, KL becomes no different than Singapore - and I mean this in a neutral way.
Does KL have "more culture per capita" then Singapore? In a sense, yes - in some sense, no. There is probably more to be had in Kuala Lumpur by way of "authentic experience" and temples, mosques and those kind of things but it is all swimming, gritty entities that they are, in a matrix of development and progress that, as with everywhere else in the world, threatens to swallow heritage, it might seem. Then, are any more of our countries any more different?
Does KL have anything on Manila? Are we really so far behind? The hopeful me says NO - we are not than far behind, they have nothing on us. While KL is at "that level" now - economically, internationally, it is nothing that good governance from our country cannot restore. And I don't mean this in a demeaning way for KL, more than anything, I think we have everything to learn from KL and Malaysia - in their rise from a British colony to an economic center in Southeast Asia.
Obviously, all these insights are based merely on a less than 10-hour scratching of the surface of what Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur have to offer. But now I can say that I've been there and I've learned some things. And while I'm seemingly ending this article on a largely reflective moment (which is what happens in real-life for me, post-exhaustion), I wish to conclude with my last bite in Kuala Lumpur.
Time: 8:30PM
My time in KL is almost up but I decided to check out the airport café for one last meal. There are various dining options but none seemed suitable except for what I found in the food lounge, SEAFOOD LAKSA. Fine, it's from the airport and, fine, there wasn't really any fresh seafood in it but it was good. The laksa was good. It might be in a detached context, it might be far from tradition but good laksa is good laksa - good food is good food.
Will I come back to KL or Malaysia, in general? Probably not soon. But when I do, I'll surely try to get good laksa again.
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