Thursday 31 August 2017

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - 3 Days Itinerary Part 1

Post our Langkawi expedition, we moved to explore the busy city life of Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. The place is the cultural, financial and economic centre of Malaysia. The city boasts of the tallest twin towers in the world and the modern skyline is dominated by it. We were lucky to witness the Sea games and the KL fashion week during our visit. We stayed at the famous Holiday Inn Express in the city centre and had an amazing experience. The Indonesian team (SEA games) was also putting up in our hotel. :) KL is well connected by bus(MRT, GO KL) and monorails and truly the leading city for tourism and shopping. Our itinerary too was a mix of both.
Our Hotel @ Kuala Lumpur


Day 1 - Suria KLCC
One of the massive shopping malls in KL is Suria KLCC. This mall is at the foot of the Petronas twin towers. It was at a walking distance from our hotel and we explored every bit of it. There are lot of eating joints and one savor the taste of authentic local delicacies. After tons of shopping we went back to our hotel and had a good night sleep.

Day 2 - Batu Caves and The Pavilion (KL Fashion Week)
 After a hearty breakfast at our hotels, we went for exploring the famous Batu Caves. It was drizzling and the weather was a bit cold. We started walking towards the nearest monorail station around the corner of our hotel. After about an hour we reached the Batu Cave station. The view of the caves from the station platform was amazing. There was still little showers and we marched forward with our umbrellas on. Entered the famous Ramayana Cave (Suyambu Lingam) and there are approx 50-80 steep stairs to view the lingam. Post that we proceeded to the Batu Caves. There are approx 300 stairs to reach the temple top. On the way one can spot ample of monkey's playing around. You may stop and click some poses with them too, unless you are not afraid. At the top there is a temple dedicated to Lord Murugan. The limsetone forming Batu Cave is said to be 400 million years old. Post the darshans we proceeded back to the KL city center area, to explore another massive shopping mall - The Pavilion. And to our surprise, we had a chance to see the KL Fashion show. It was one of an experience of its kind. Sharing couple of glimpses -

Entry Fees to Ramayan Cave - 5RM per person
Entry Fees to Batu Cave - Free
Timings - Batu Caves - 06AM-9PM (All days of the week)

Lord Hanuman - Way to Ramayana Cave

Ramyana Cave Entrance

Entrance

Interiors @ Ramayana Cave

Interiors @ Ramayana Cave

Suyambu Lingam

Batu Caves - Entrance

View from Inside the cave

View from Inside the caves

KL Fashion Week Glimpses

KL Fashion Week Glimpses

KL Fashion Week Glimpses

KL Fashion Week Glimpses

KL Fashion Week Glimpses

Day 3 @ KL is in my next post wherein we had a chance to explore the famous Petronas Twin Tower.
Petronas Twin Tower, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Happy Reading and Happy Travelling...

Sunday 27 August 2017

Langkawi, Malaysia - Day 2 - SkyCable and SkyBridge

Post the Mangrove tour, there was still much to explore. Amazed by the spectacular views of Langkawi, we now planned to take a bird 's eye view of the island. I was definitely much inspired by the movie Don which was shooted here and that lead to my next stop - Langkawi Skybridge and the only way to reach there is the Cable Car/ SkyCab. :) How exciting this sounds... I am sure you must be interested to read more about this along with the Sky Glide experience. So here we go.

Langkawi Skycab -
One can reach the Langkawi cable car or SkyCab ground station by taking a cab or a taxi. You then need to proceed to the ticketing counter and collect tickets for the Skycab. The ticket is a combo which allows entry to the 3D art museum, SkyRex and SkyDome along with the Skycab. You are then allowed to board your Gondola (there are glass bottom, VIP, and private gondola's as well and the price varies accordingly). The journey starts from the ground station and takes you to the middle station. Nature is at its best and you will be amazed by the mesmerizing beauty of this island. After a stroll, you would again onboard a gondola to the top station - the entry to the Skybridge is from here. Langkawi Skycab is the steepest in the world and one's heart almost shrinks when you go up and up. At a point in time, you would feel that the gondola isn't moving and you are hanging up in the air, but the reality is that it moves at a very slow pace that the person doesn't realizes :)
Bird's Eye View from the Middle Station

SkyCabs in motion !



Langkawi SkyBridge and SkyGlide -

An inclinator called the Skyglide links the top station and the Skybridge. It takes approx 2 minutes via the skyglide to reach the bridge and can hold a maximum capacity of 12 people. You can also opt to reach the bridge on foot by taking 300 steps on a steep mountain path. Video of the Skyglide -



Langkawi Skybridge is a 125 metre curved pedestrian cable stayed bridge, with a deck 660 m above the sea level and offers a panoramic view of the island. There are glass sections on the bridge which allows one to take a view of the valley beneath. I almost felt that I can touch the clouds above me, could feel the breeze and the sun amidst the clouds above the sea created such a breathtaking view. 

After soaking the beauty in our hearts and cameras , we came back again via the skyglide to the top station. There is a souvenir shop wherein you can buy articles like magnets, keychains, tshirts etc (although it is expensive). Boarded the Skycab again for our downward journey and reached the ground station. It was an experience of the time lifetime.
SkyBridge - A walk of lifetime

Amidst the clouds 

Reflection of the sun in the sea beneath

Love is in the air !
3D Art Museum, SkyRex and SkyDome

These are additional activities along with Skycab and Skybridge and can be done in an hours time.

  • SkyRex - Visitors take their seats on atram styles simulator and are taken on for a 5 minutes journey while a 3D film is project in the front and sides of the tram to give a realistic experience.
  • SkyDome - It is a 10 minutes show and can accomodate max 50 people. It offers 360 degree of 3D image projections which easily covers your field of view. It is a memorable experience and quite relaxing as well.
  • 3D Art Museum - There are 9 different theme zones and the visitors are encouraged to step inside or crawl into exhibits, interact with the characters and become the subject of the amazing artwork that had been put to display. Capture your moments in your cameras, for the memories of your lifetime.

Operating Hours - 09:30AM-07:00PM on Weekdays and Weekends.

Tickets -

  • RM 55 for an adult (Non Malaysian person) and RM 40 for Child. This ticket includes the SkyCab, 3d Art Museum, SkyDome and SkyRex
  • RM 5 for Skybridge for an adult.
  • RM 10 for Skyglide

Tips -
  • Ensure that you do not have any loose articles while on boarding Gondola as you may have to discard it at the entry. 
  • Check the weather forecast prior to your visit as Skycab moves a bit during windy and rainy days. So if you are scared of heights prefer doing it on a sunny day.
Overall It was an amazing experience and we loved every bit of it.
Remember to share your comments after reading this post or if you had visited, would love to hear your experience.

Saturday 26 August 2017

Langkawi, Malaysia - Day 1 - Mangrove Tour, Kilim Geoforest Park

Langkawi, the jewel of Kedah, It is an archipelago of 104 islands in the Andaman sea. We visited Langkawi on 15th August from Singapore via the scoot airlines. It was quite a small plane and was flying at super low height (was scary a bit ;)). After landing at the Langkawi airport, we faced a fish market. Arrival gate was crowded by rental car operators, all screaming at their best sharing their best offers. We quickly booked our Uber and left for our Hotel - Hotel Bayview. It was approx 30 min drive from the airport. Soaking the scenic beauty , amidst the drizzles, we reached our hotel and rested. In the evening we explored the hotel surrounding on foot, ate and had an early dinner.
Eagle Square - Langkawi

Day 1 -
After a sumptuous breakfast, we boarded our vehicle for the half day Mangrove tour. It was a group tour of approx 15 folks and a 30 minutes drive to the famous Tanjung Rhu beach. We explored the beach while the tour operator waited for the rest of the folks to join. The beauty, the serenity and the calmness is beyond words. It wasn't a high tide day and we relaxed on the beach. One can see the thai border with naked eyes and it just takes 30 minutes via a speed boat to land on Thai beach ;) After some time we all were divided in a group of 14-15 folks and Abu was our tour guide - highly informative, witty and lively. We were thrilled to start out Mangrove tour and below was the itinerary shared for the next 4 hours.
Tanjung Rhu Beach Langkawi
Mangrove Tour -
  • Fish Farm feeding
  • Riverbank/Monkey Feeding
  • Mangrove Tour
  • Eagle Sightseeing
  • Bat Caves
  • Crocodile Caves
  • Buffet Lunch
  • Back to hotel
We boarded our speed boat and off we set in middle of the sea to our first stop - the fish feeding farms. We saw different varieties of fishes and had an experience of feeding them as well. It was quite informative yet a little scary for me. :P The place wasn't that smelly as I was expecting, which was a much relief for me. Further we went exploring the mangroves and reached a place wherein monkeys are fed. The king is fed first with a banana and later the rest of the crew with melons etc. The monkeys are quite friendly at this place and I even saw them swim :D.Later we went deeper inside the mangroves and came across some snakes as well sleeping on the trees. Clicked some pics and moved ahead. Soon we came to a little open area wherein we could spot some 5-6 other speed boats. One of them started feeding the eagles and we saw plenty of them moving above us for the food. It was such a treat to watch. 

Approaching the Fish Feeding Farms
Eagles searching for food

Some more Eagles

Spotting snakes in the Mangroves

Mangroves - CloseUp View

The King Monkey - Loving Banana's

Excited for our next stop, the driver geared us with life jackets and off we went with 60kmph speed onto the other side of the mangroves, straight into the Bat caves. It was quite smelly (as expected). Entry fee was 2RM per person and if you wish to buy a torch light for the visit, an extra of 1RM was to be paid. We were instructed not to scream or make any kind of noise as that would disturb the sleeping bats. We spent approx 30 min there exploring the caves, the jungle and the smelly surrounding. :) But the tour just doesn't end here. We proceed then to the crocodile cave, a cave without crocodile though. During low tide, the cave mouth is left open and the boat can easily enter the cave. After that, the boat was straight into the open sea in the middle of gushing waters, and I clicked the famous sign of Kilim Geoforest Park. We could now clearly spot the Thai waters and the beaches. The tides were medium by now and we had lots of ups and down, no less than a roller coaster ride. We were hungry and were headed to our last stop for buffet lunch. There were both vegetarian and non vegetarian options and we quite loved the food. Later we were transfered to the Tanjung Rhu beach and off to hotel. It was quite an experience and we were amazed with the spectacular views of Langakwi.
View from the SpeedBoat

BatCaves :D

Kilim Geoforest Park - Signboard!!!

Tour Package - 160RM per person (inclusive of buffet lunch, to and fro hotel transfers

  • Remember to carry your umbrella/poncho to protect from rains
  • Choose a low tide day to fully enjoy the tour

Neemrana - Delhi Weekend Gateway

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