Kuala Lumpur, or simply KL, is Malaysia's capital city, the country's hub for commerce and finance. It is the home to breathtaking modern mega structures; a home to about 1.6 million people of different races and cultures. (source: KL tourism flyers) When I set foot on KL last summer, it feels like I am still in Metro Manila, our country's capital region; except that it's more densely populated here and that they, of course, have that towering twin towers! :D
Anyway, I've mentioned in my previous posts that our KL-SG adventure last summer was on a package tour; and just like any other package tour, it includes a free half day tour to some of the city's interesting attractions. In KL, our city tour includes a visit to the Istana Negara (National Palace), Tugu Negara (National Monument), Masjid Negara (National Mosque), leather factory/store, batik (a cloth printed with various patterns) shop, and chocolate factory.
Istana Negara (National Palace)
Istana Negara or National Palace is the official residence of the Yang de-Pertuan Agong, the king or head of state of Malaysia. Located along Jalan Duta in Kuala Lumpur, this Istana Negara is the newly-built official residence of the King, replacing the old Istana Negara along Jalan Istana. It has an imposing gateway which is guarded by the Malay Regiment and palace guards. The palace is not open for tourists though, so people just flocked the main gate for photo-ops. ;)
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| Istana Negara (National Palace) |
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| Istana Negara main entrance, where tourists usually gather for photo-ops |
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| Daulat Tuanku! Long live the King! (left) Horse-mounted replacement guards in full uniform (right) |
Tugu Negara (National Monument)
Tugu Negara or the National Monument is a sculpture erected to commemorate the soldiers who died fighting for Malaysia's freedom during World War II and the Malayan Emergency. The sculpture (the new one) is made of bronze resting on a granite base. It is located in the Lake Gardens, near the Malaysian Houses of Parliament.
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| Tugu Negara (National Monument) - the old (left) and the new (right) monuments |
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| Tugu Negara entrance |
Masjid Negara (National Mosque)
Masjid Negara or National Mosque is one of the most distinguished landmarks in Kuala Lumpur because of its star-shaped dome and 73-meters high minaret. (source: KL tourism flyers) It is situated near the Lake Gardens, along Jalan Perdana. Tourists, especially women who want to enter the mosque are required to wear robe and hijab or head scarf. Robes and hijabs are available at the entrance to the main prayer hall.
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| Negara Masjid (National Mosque) |
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| Masjid Negara - Main Prayer Hall |
After the mosque, we passed by Dataran Merdeka (Merdeka Square), took some photos there and then we went straight to Roncato, a leather factory located along Jalan Imbi. Their products are quite expensive and the designs are not that attractive though so we left the factory just after a few minutes of looking around. The driver/tour guide then accompanied us to Daisy's, a batik shop near Roncatos. The shop sells not only batik products but also other souvenir items like shirts, scarfs, etc. My friends bought some shirts for souvenir.
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| Sultan Abdul Samad Building, one of the old buildings in Kuala Lumpur |
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| Sultan Abdul Samad Building, near Merdaka Square |
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| Roncato Leatherware |
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| Daisy's Batik Shop/Store (thanks GB for some of the photos used in this collage) |
The last stop in our city tour is the visit to a chocolate factory, Beryl's. We were all excited to visit the place then because we knew that we could taste test some of the chocolates there (choco-addicts lang...hehe!). Beryl's prided itself with their premium quality products; and true to their words, their chocolates are really good. They have variety of flavors but the ones I tried were almond, pure dark choco, chili and mint flavors. I especially liked their chili- and mint-flavored dark chocolates, so yummy! But their chocolates are pricey though, so I ended up buying just one flavor, the mint one. :(
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| Beryl's Chocolate Kingdom |
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| Bottles and Chocolates! |
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| TPW & friends' souvenir shots, during the city tour |
It was raining that time, just a drizzle though, that's why most of my outdoor photos are gloomy. But despite the drizzle, despite the gloomy weather, we still enjoyed the tour; we visited a lot of places though some are not that interesting :P in just a span of three hours. Up next: our Batu Caves Adventure. Till then... ^_^
~ oo00oo ~
KL Summer Adventure Series:* Street Dining at Jalan Alor (Day 1)
* Accommodations at Hotel Alpha Genesis
* The City Tour (Day 2)
* 272 Steps to Batu Caves Temple (Day 2)
* The Towering Towers of Kuala Lumpur (Day 2)
* Shopping in Jalan Petaling - KL Chinatown (Day 3)
~ oo00oo ~
Date of Visit: May 7, 2012
Expenses: RM40.20 (for a pack of chocolates and a bottle of water)
Wow, naka pag trip na naman ko gor free through your post. I learned too and tasted their chocolates. Hi hi. Have a blessed day and looling forward for the next adventure:)
ReplyDeleteHi Ms. Joy, ako rin naman po eh, parang namamasyal sa Norway sa mga posts nyo, thanks po. :)
DeleteHELLO! ask ko lang kung hindi ba mahigpit immigration ng pinas pagpunta ng kl?
ReplyDeletecan't wait for november :)
Hi Bino! Di naman, ask lang nila san ako nagwo-work, yun lang, hehe! Inip na ba? Sandali na lang Nov, bilis ng oras eh. Try mo Jalan Alor street dining pagpunta mo KL. ;)
DeleteNice pictrues, it sure does look a lot of fun! :D By the way, and in a totally unrelated manner, there is a mysterious illness that has killed more than dozens in Cambodia. Said deaths have been linked to the Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease. Perhaps we need to re-schedule, Pinaywanderer? :o
ReplyDeleteChocolate factory?parang heaven saken yan, haha! Ano lasa ng chili-flavored? ang weird ata! Ang grandiosa ng palace nila. At meron palang leather na gawa sa stingray?kawawa naman yun sting ray..
ReplyDeletekorek ka gurl, grandiosa! lasa ng chili-flavored choco, di ko alam pano sabihin, basta alam mo yun lasang maanghang, lasang sili pero di naman mainit sa bibig, ganon sya, masarap in short, mahilig kase ko sa spicy eh., haha... ;)
DeleteAng sarap sigurong tumira sa chocolate kingdom!!! Mananaba ako at dadami ang pimples ko hehehe.
ReplyDeleteMalaysia, truly asia ika nga.makapunta ka diyan kapag nakasuwerte pagdating ng panahon hehehe
parang gusto ko tuloy ngayon kumain ng chocolate...
ReplyDeleteWow, ang ganda ng mga place...Thanks for sharing at least nakita ko din ang other side ng KL.
ReplyDeletewow chocolate factory....i love that!
ReplyDeletesana mapuntahan namin yan pag nagpunta kmia Malaysia sa OCt :-)
Hangganda ng Malaysia, pangarap kana lang ba?
ReplyDelete