Malaysia - Melaka, Kuala Lumpur and Cameron Highlands - Dutch, chaotic and mossy

Dear Malaysia lovers,
After my week in Bali and my week in Singapore it was time to move on within Southeast Asia. From Singapore I took the bus across to Malaysia and into Melaka (also known as Malacca). This town which is about 120 km South of Kuala Lumpur is a listed World Heritage City due to its rich history. Mostly because of their Dutch occupation but the Portuguese have been there as well and many buildings have been preserved. I had a good look around. Luckily everything is very close to each other and easily visited within a day.

All the trishaws are as heavily decorated as the ones on this picture

Porta de Santiago

This is the Proclamation of Independence Memorial and normally you can visit it for free but due to some construction work it was closed

I walked around and up to the top pf the hill where I had this view towards the sea and over the city

At the top of the hill you will find the ruins of the St. Paul's church with the statue of Francis Xavier in front of it

Down the hill I passed the Stadthuys and walked onto the Red Square (also known as Dutch Sqauare) with the Victoria Fountain and the Christ Church

I crossed the little river and went into the Jonker Walk with lots of shops

And temples

In the Geographer Cafe I ate this famous Malaysian dish: Nasi Lemak

I also walked through Heerenstreet and by the time I crossed the river again to get back to my guesthouse it was getting dark and I had this great view along the river.

As I wrote before within a day you can see all the important sights, so the next day I packed my suitcase and got on the bus to Kuala Lumpur. After I checked into my guesthouse next to the Central Market I went for a walk around the area.

This is I think a ministry building next to Merdeka Square

I took some pictures around Merdeka Square with a mosque and some other buildings I don't know, sorry

This is Kasturi walk next to the Central Market

Then I got on the free GOKL bus towards the Petronas Twin Towers - what a sight! These towers are really beautiful!

This is the view from the towers towards the city. I went into the shopping center to pass the time until nightfall and ate some Nyunyo food - whatever it was, they really filled me.

At night is the best time to see the illuminated Petronas Twin Towers

The next day I went to visit the Lake Garden but got totally lost in the city. It took me two hours to find my way back to the guesthouse and I had enough of the chaos of this city. After I refreshed I took the train to the Batu Caves where I encountered lots of cheeky monkeys and even more pigeons.

And this is the statue of the Batu Caves. Very impressive

In the evening I got into Bukit Bintang with the Golden Triangle, the shopping area of Kuala Lumpur. I got totally lost in all these massive malls. I also went into the Betrayja Times Square but couldn't find the rollercoaster :-(

Well, Kuala Lumpur was nice for a day but then it quickly dissolved into a chaotic city where I couldn't stay any longer. I couldn't really pinpoint it but I didn't like the city and had to get out quickly. So after just two days I took the four-hour bus into the Cameron Highlands and 10 minutes after I checked into my guesthouse there it started to pour down! And it didn't stop all evening and night...
The next morning however was fairly nice and I started to climb up the Jasar mountain. Yepp, I think Australia has turned me into a hiking fan, oh dear... The way wasn't always very clear, especially as the marking of the trail no. 10 that I followed most of the time only consistes of this:

The more permanent signs have been scribbled all over with corrections. Very professional...

After a very steep and sweaty climb I reached the summit after 1.5 hours next to the electricity mast

I descended on the other side which took me along a sideroad back into the town of Tanah Rata after another 2 hours. I have never earned a shower and a nap so badly. And in the afternoon it poured down again, so there was nothing much to do than eat and organise my next stops on the internet.
The next morning I had booked a half-day tour around the Cameron Highlands. Together with Anuschka and Marissa (both Germans, of course ;-) ) our guide Bob took us first to the biggest tea plantation of the area BOH tea estate where Bob explained us the art of tea drinking while we enjoyed a fabulous view over the tea bushes and then it was time for tea and cake.

This was our car for our tour. Cool, huh?

Although the summit was still covered in clouds we went up into the mossy forest

After the boardwalk Bob took us into the real mossy forest at Brinchang mountain and explained more about the trees and the plants of this mystical forest. This is Anuschka, Bob and me

And this is Marissa :-)

Our next stop was the Butterfly and Insect farm. I didn't like the insect part very much, especially as the enclosures looked a bit crammed and not very well cared of. The butterfly house was nicer.

Our last stop around 2pm was one of the strawberry and lettuce farms. Due to the climate of the Cameron Highlands strawberries and other kinds of fruits and vegetables grow all year round.

I had some Fried Strawberry Ice Cream :-)

Back in the guesthouse at 3pm I had a two-hour nap before I got some take-away food which Anuschka, Marissa and I had to watch the movie "Drive" together with two other girls, Nienke and Caroline.
So, my first week in Malaysia was very eventful, very different to what I expected and much more rainy than I liked. So it was time for some drier regions. My next stops: the islands on the West Coast of the Malaysian peninsular!
Yours Malaysia-city-and-highlands-exploring Stefanie