My next flight to other ASEAN country destination was scheduled in late evening. Thus, I got ample time to have a side trip. The nearest tourist destination from Kuala Lumpur is the Batu Caves, so I have decided to do a quick trip to Batu Caves.
Batu Caves’ Lord Murugan statue
To get to Batu Caves from KL Sentral station, take the KTM Komuter train route to Batu Caves. The train ride took about 30 mins to almost an hour with stops in between stations. I left the hotel at 0700H and got to the train station 15 mins after. It was an early railroad ride with few commuters. The trip was convenient and comfortable and the train was neat and clean. When I got to Batu Caves station, I just followed the signs and seen the gate with this view.
Statue of Hanuman
Statue of Hanuman welcomes every traveler at the gate. It is gigantic and magnificent. I was impressed with the details of the statue and how huge it was. Lord Hanuman is a green Hindu monkey god with golden helmet and arms held across chest. He was a devotee and an aide to Lord Rama. With his contribution to the Hindu religion, a temple was erected with his statue standing on guard the Batu Caves.
Lord Hanuman statue and the gate out to the train station.
Limestone Hill
Small temple near Hanuman statue
The view of the roof of the temple
The magnificent chandeliers inside the temple.
The temple
Lord Murugan statue is the tallest statue of a Hindu deity in Malaysia and the second tallest in the world. It took 3 years of construction. The Batu Caves is referred as 10th Caves or Hill for Lord Murugan. The Batu Caves is a limestone hill that has a series of caves and cave temples. The town nearby is also named the Batu Caves.
Closer photo of Lord Murugan
Lord Murugan statue with the stairway to the cave temple
Lord Murugan statue and the stairway
Zoom photo of the staircase
It was just a brief trip to the Batu Caves but it was worth the trip. The sceneries were just amazing. The Hindu Gods and the temples along with the limestone hill were marvelous. It was a good thing that I have decided to get out of the hotel and explore the nearest tourist attraction from KL. My quick trip to the Batu Caves was indeed a remarkable experience.
I got a 3-week vacation so, I made sure to make it worth. I decided to go back to my roots but before landing to my birth country. I had a side trip to one of the most progressive countries in Southeast Asia, Malaysia. Good thing about Malaysia is their mode of transportation is well developed and organised that getting around the capital city of Kuala Lumpur is easy breezy. Though I did my research before coming over, I heard about this bus that tours around tourists for a good price of 55 Malaysian Ringgit. Other developed countries have it too, thus, I took advantage of the bus service. It was my hop on, hop off in Malaysia, truly Asia.
Since I only have a limited time in Malaysia and I wanted to see the key points of the country’s history and tourist spots, I did book a ticket for a KL Hop On Hop Off Experience for 55 Malaysian Ringgit. I have seen and talked to my friends who have done it and they’ve told me it’s worth it. Thus, I made sure I’m doing it. Malaysia is also 10th on my list.
Updated List of Countries That I Would Love to Visit
I arrived in Malaysia at around 1000H via AirAsia. I already did find out on where the stops are. Thus, planning where to join was easy. After I got out of the plane from Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 2, I took the KL Express that will bring me to KL Sentral. KL Sentral is like the center-point of all ground transportation such as the KTM Komuter, LRT, Rapid KL Bus and both KL Express and KL Transit. This also include KL Sentral as one of the stops of the hop on hop off bus.
KL Sentral station
KL Sentral is the 11th stop of the KL Hop On Hop Off Bus. It is widely used for transportation within Kuala Lumpur and around Malaysia. KL Sentral is Malaysia’s largest transit hub and is the city’s integrated rail transportation service. It is a transit-oriented development which houses the main railway station of Kuala Lumpur and the main intercity railway station in the country. The location is always jam-packed since it is the rendezvous to all travelers, foreign and local alike.
View on the way to KL Sentral
KL Sentral
The 12th stop is the National Museum. In Malay, it is called Muzium Negara. It is a museum located on Jalan Damansara and its facade comprises the elements of traditional Malay and modern features. Now, it serves as a repository of the country’s rich cultural and historic heritage.
National Museum
Muzium Negara
Tanks outside the Muzium Negara
13th stop is the National Palace. It is also called as the Royal Museum and in Malay, Muzium Diraja. It is situated along Jalan Istana. It stands on a 13-acre site located on a commanding position on the slope of a hill of Bukit Petaling overlooking the Klang River. The National Palace was majestic and grandiose.
National Palace
Closer View of National Palace
The bus also stopped at 14th, 15th and 16th which were the Lake Garden, Bird Park, and the National Mosque. 17th to 21st were Independence Square, Medan MARA, Raja Laut, Bulatan Pahang and Titiwangsa.
15th Stop Bird Park
A unique and eye catching view near National Mosque at bus stop 16
Near National Mosque
On our way to downtown KL
View of KL Tower from afar
View of the Twin Towers from afar
Amazing details of a Malaysian building
18th stop at Medan MARA
Medan MARA, standing tall with intricate details
21st stop is Titiwangsa with Palace of Culture
22nd stop was back to downtown KL, the Ampang Park. The tour goes back to the first stop after the last stop at the most visited location, the Petronas Twin Towers.
downtown KL
Kuala Lumpur
The 23rd and last bus stop is the Petronas Towers. The Petronas Twin Towers are the twin skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the most visited site in the city and one of the most famous buildings and a landmark of the country. It was once called as the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 but remain the tallest twin tower in the world.
Last stop: Petronas Twin Towers
Closer image of Petronas Twin Towers
Back to the first stop again, the first stop was the MaTIC or they called Malaysia Tourism Center. I stayed in the bus until it’ll take me to nearest stop to my hotel. Running the same route, we passed thru other bus stops. Bus stop no. 2 was the KL Tower. KL Tower or the Kuala Lumpur Tower is a telecommunications tower which features an antenna that increases its height and is ranked 7th of tallest freestanding tower in the world. The tower below has a stairwell and an elevator is used to climb to the upper area. At the upper area, it has a revolving restaurant which provides a panoramic view of the city for the diners.
I Love KL Tower Sign
KL Tower
Standing proud and tall, KL Tower
Another attraction in KL Tower is the 1st KL Upside Down House where everything is upside down.
The next stops were the KL City Walk at 3rd, KL Convention Center and Aquaria at 4th, 5th in Karyaneka, Bintang Walk at 6th, Tengkat Tong Shin, China Town, and Central Market at 7th, 8th and 9th, respectively. I hopped off of the bus at stop 9th which was Little India. Little India is known as the Brickfields. It is a neighborhood located at the western flank central KL. This area has a high percentage of Indian residents and businesses. Once in Little India, travelers can tell they are in an Indian town with its smell of curry and spices.
Central Market
Little India
It was my first time to try a hop on hop off bus and it was great. The company made sure that the stops were significant to the history and relevant to what is Kuala Lumpur now. It was entertaining as well as informative. The cost was a bit mid-range but it was worth it if you just want to see the city in your own pace. My hop on hop off bus experience in Kuala Lumpur was a success and memorable. So if you happen to be in Malaysia, Truly Asia, try the city bus sightseeing and you’ll never regret riding it.
For my Malaysia, truly Asia in The Lone Traveler’s way vlog, check my YouTube channel:
Should rather live life close to the bird rather than waste time wishing for wings,they said. Not everyone are born equal, they said. You can aspire but you cannot have all things, they said. But you know what, I might have wings, I said.
The Traveler Carl 