Kuala Lumpur - getting around and first day

As I should have expected, the plan did not go so much... as planned.

The aim of the day was to visit the National Mosque and the Islamic arts Museum Of Malaysia.

Both are located in the same area of the city, short distance from the central train station. I decided to head there walking... which was not a bad idea but the difficulty to reach these places efficiently was doomed by the fact that I was not carrying a good map, just a poorly printed copy displaying only the main roads.

One of the entrance of the National Mosque

For that reason I took several detours around the National Mosque. When I eventually got there I was welcome by a group of devoted Muslims giving free gifts (a piece of cake and a little perfume). The Islamic community is celebrating the birthday of the Prophet, hence the little present to visitors. Unfortunately, no access was granted to me at the Mosque since I arrived during praying hours. 

Islamic arts Museum

Next stop the Museum located 5 minutes walk from the Mosque.

Getting there, the emptiness of the place really surprised me. It would turn out that I arrived after the first round of group visits and left before the second round of group visits. Lunch time IS the perfect time of the day to visit this place, you skip the noisy and not always interested foreigners.

The different exhibits were absolutely wonderful. I got to learn a lot of things about Muhammed, Islam, Prayers, Architecture, Calligraphy ... and Islamic arts in general. A temporary exhibition of Austria and Islam highlighted the influence of the Muslim world to this european nation.

This museum is a must if you are curious and want to learn about another culture. I have to thank Thierry for the tip there. It turned out I spent much more time than expected visiting the collections loosing another opportunity to go to the Mosque (visits in between prayers).

I decided to return and go towards the Twin Towers, walking around the city for a total of 20km according to the activity tracker of my watch. I eventually got back to the park I was running in the same morning... but absolutely crowded. It would have been impossible to run during the day. 

Shopping mall underneath the Petronas Twin Towers facing the KLCC park

Petronas Twin Towers. Once the tallest building in the world.

I returned to the hostel around 5 pm, lied down for a little bit while uploading the pictures on the computer and speaking to other guests. We decided at 6pm to go have a drink at the Heli Bar, a heliport during the day that transforms in a lounge bar in the evening. The view up there is amazing: KL tower on one side, Twin Towers on the other side. The group of people I am with could hardly be more international: an American, a few Brits, an Ukrainian, a Dutch and a Malaysian. 

That's what travelling is all about, meeting different people and sharing experiences.

Photo credit Aizad.

Tomorrow I will be heading to Cameron Highlands, known for its tea plantation and endless hiking possibilities.

And some more photos and curiosities:

KLCC park. Despite being rather small, it is possible to take pictures without humans on it!

Sidewalks with roof are found everywhere in KL.

View from the heli lounge bar before sunset.