Gem of the East
A short account of my visit to Malaysia
Modern Malaysia is synonymous with Mahateer Mohammad, the later playing Kamal Attaturk in a big way, bringing the former to its present standing. Today’s Malaysia is far different from the one I had known through my Malaysian class fellows in the dental school at Lahore in the 1960s. I may sound a bit rude but the fact is that this country has not much heritage to boast about though it certainly has developed to the level of European standards to attract the tourists from across the globe in big numbers and the credit must be given to Mahateer Mohammad who served the country for two decades as its Prime Minister.
An unquenchable appetite for new places dictates my passion and that is what made me choose Malaysia as part of my trip to the East. I had heard a lot about this great Muslim country but landing at Kuala Lumpur International Airport made me forget that I was visiting an Asian country. A state of the art large terminal building, civilized passenger handling services coupled with excellent airport facilities and sixty odd km drive on the winding express way to our hotel in the city centre, gave the feel of Europe. Pakistan High Commission in Kuala Lumpur facilitated us with their logistic support and I was happy to have made the right choice to visit Malaysia.
Kuala Lumpur in local language means ‘muddy river confluence’ and it got this name when it surfaced on this land as a small sleepy village inhabited by Chinese tin miners. The settlement grew in to a metropolis over the years but not without its share of bad times. Lawlessness once reigned supreme, kidnappings were frequent and passengers from the ships calling at the Malay ports feared for their lives and belongings. Things have turned around over the past three decades and visits to the Malaysian capital by travel writers earned it rave reviews, enticing hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors.
Although most of this tropical country is cloaked in foliage, the urban development has also been phenomenal, meticulously converting this country in to a ‘civilized wilderness’. The six lane highway to the city meanders through thick palm plantations on an undulated terrain. Road side view was picturesque, quaint and colourful. Red, sloping, corrugated roof tops surrounded by thick foliage were so breath taking that I was completely blown away. Steady drizzle with interspersed heavy downpour proved delirious to the first time visitors. This was the Malaysia I was supposed to be exploring for the next ten days or so.
Every country has myths and legends encompassing a generous part of what humans have inherited from their fore fathers, and Malaysia too has its share of mythical tales. Mythology aside, even otherwise this country has a lot to offer and its slogan, “Truly Asia”, says it all. Home to various multi-ethnic cultures including Malay, Chinese, Indians and other small groups, Malaysia is a vibrant country with great infrastructure, humble people and fascinating sites. Although Islam is the official religion of the country, there is a complete religious freedom for the minorities.
Kuala Lumpur is a perfect amalgamation of modern and traditional life styles with breath taking cultural biodiversity and natural beauty. Petronas Twin Towers, the city’s identity mark, were at a walking distance from our hotel in the city centre, where its lower six floors out of a total of eighty eight, comprised of Suria Mall, the place we frequented for shopping, dining and whiling away our free time in the evenings. It is a single roof, multi storey shopping complex with a variety of international brand stores, authentic food chains and colourful kiosks. The high point of Petronas is the sky bridge connecting the two towers at level 42. The nearby KL Tower gives a better view of the city than the former and is visited by the tourists for the same reason.
We also undertook a detailed visit to Muzium Negara, the National Museum, and got to know some history of the place along with a demonstration of extraction of rubber from the plants, once their main source of revenue, but the museum that we enjoyed the most was Islamic Art Museum, a cross between a modernistic and traditional Middle Eastern architecture. This museum, besides having a large collection of relics relating to Islamic civilization, had replicas of famous mosques from around the world and the two that really stunned us were from Thailand and China, the later constructed during the rule of Tang Dynasty in 742 AD in the Chinese city of Xian. An invaluable copy of famous ‘Shahnama-e-Islam’ by Firdausi was also on display in the museum. The beautiful Masjid Negara (National Mosque) stands right opposite the Islamic Art Museum.
Two Royal Palaces, the old one turned in to a museum for the general public and the new palace serving as residence cum office of the monarch, are two must see places in Kuala Lumpur. We could see the Old National Palace, inhabited by the royalty until November 2011, from inside and get a glimpse of the Royal protocol. Royal offices including the throne room and ministers and ambassadors’ meeting places and private quarters comprising of royal bed rooms, library, dining area, TV lounge and the dental clinic were a treat to visit. The palace was guarded by two sentries in traditional Malay costumes. The King moved to the expansive new palace over a year back in 2011, but his new residence, closed to visitors, could only be viewed from the outside. The Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan in Malaysia told me that the palace was so large that caddies had to be used to commute from one place to another during the official ceremonies. The well laid out neighborhood of Putrajaya is the new administrative centre of the Malaysian government adjacent to the metropolis and gives very impressive looks. It is a beautifully developed area.
The road transport devised for the city excursion is excellent, taxis are cheap and nice, rail network is modern and fast but the best way recommended for the visitors to get around KL is tourist friendly ‘hop-on, hop-off’ bus service. We, however, chose to hire a six seater taxi which was quite commodious and reasonably inexpensive. We visited three parks in that area starting with KL Bird Park, claimed to be the world’s largest free flight walk in aviary, located in serene and scenic KL Lake Gardens. It was quite entertaining to watch a variety of friendly fauna wheeling around the wooded surroundings, and mix up with them. The nearby Butterfly Park was very artistically laid out netted enclosure with amazing landscape, decorative fish ponds, artistically designed walking bridges and manmade waterfalls. The butterflies hovering in big numbers looked like ‘wild flowers on wings’. The adjoining KL Lake Gardens were large and very well planned. It was surprising to see three weddings being solemnized in different nooks and corners of the Lake Gardens, the brides dressed in traditional white and the grooms in formal suits. All in all the nature was at its best in these surroundings where God’s paint brush was truly at work.
Visitors to Malaysia make it a point to visit Langkawi Island in the Andaman Sea which can only be reached by air, and Genting Highlands, an hour’s drive from the capital. We too visited both the places; with an overnight stay at Langkawi and a day trip to the later. A day out at Genting Highlands was a fun filled experience to remember. Situated at an altitude of 6100 ft above sea level it is rightly dubbed as ‘Fun city above the clouds’. This place has everything that is on a tourist’s wish list; five star hotels, world class casinos, a variety of theme parks with rides for all age groups and international food chains. It is a place where all the colours, flavours, sounds and sights of Asia come together. It is an entertainment extravaganza where everyone is in a festive mood. Tropical rain forests surrounding the area, when seen from the cable car, lend it a scenery that is too picture perfect to believe. Mist and rain are endemic in Genting Highlands. Malaysia has an intimate relationship with nature. Strawberry and Lavender farms were two other places we visited in the vicinity and it was a good learning experience to see these plantations. The climate was conducive to strawberry and lavender farming because of the high altitude.
There are other places to see in Kuala Lumpur; China Town to get a taste of the Far East, covered Central Market for souvenirs and brand imitation merchandise and Pewter factory for lovely sculptures, the former two not very reflective of the economic boom the country is passing through. Fast pace of development is, however, visible in the country and the hot and humid tropical weather has never been a hurdle in its colossal development. Present day Malaysia can be rightly called the ‘gem of the east’.
The writer is a Dental Surgeon and can be reached at dsq006@gmail.com
Published by Alisha Khuram
