MARVELS OF MALAYSIA

After sightseeing in Hong Kong and Macau, our next destination was Malaysia. The currency here is MYR (Ringgit) and is equivalent to around 17 INR. But for whatever little shopping we did here, we were able to pay in INR.

Our wake-up call at our hotel in Hong Kong was at 4 am. We were ready at our lobby at 5 and started for the airport before 6. After group booking of our luggage and getting our boarding passes, we enjoyed our packed breakfast before going through Security Check and Immigration which was smooth as we had separate queue for senior citizens. 

The flight from Hong Kong to Kuala Lampur was of 4 hour duration and included a delicious Indian meal. We landed in Kuala Lampur airport at 12.30.

Here there was no separate queue for seniors for Immigration but there was not much crowd.

Day 1

Soon after boarding our luggage and ourselves in our coach, we headed straight to the Indian 'Restoran' Jaipur Mahal. You are not going to believe this - but we relished some typical South Indian dishes here - curd rice and 'thayir molaga' (fried special dried chilli) and 'pakkodam' (a variety of chakli). Incidentally, Malaysia boasts of a large population of Tamilians.

The weather was warm and we had to remove our light sweaters. As we drove through the city of KL, looking at the imposing buildings, 

our local guide Nancy gave us information about the country and the landmarks. She spoke very good English. Later, she even joined us during 'Antakshari' and entertained us with some Hindi songs.

We picked up very useful Malaysian words - 'Tandas' (Rest room),'ton ton' (ladies) and 'pon pon' (gents). And the word for milk is ...'susu'.

We drove around and passed Cyberjaya, a town with a science park as the core that forms a key part of the Multimedia Super Corridor in Malaysia. This IT-themed city aspires to be the Silicon Valley of Malaysia. 

Adjacent to Cyberjaya and developed along with it is Putrajaya, Malaysia's new seat of government. Putrajaya, the idea of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, became Malaysia's third Federal Territory, after Kuala Lumpur and Labuan, in 2001. It is a planned city and the federal administrative center of Malaysia. The seat of government was shifted in 1999 from the overcrowded Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya. Kuala Lumpur remains Malaysia's national capital and is the seat of the King, the Parliament, and all the foreign embassies, and the country's commercial and financial center.

We crossed a bridge and got down from our coach. 

The scenic view was fascinating with the 'Putra Mosque' seen far away beyond the man-made Putrajaya lake. 

We got a closer view of the mosque as we drove to Dataran Merdeka Square. This iconic spot has been a focal point for many events. This was the historic site where the Union Jack flag was lowered and the Malayan flag first hoisted at midnight on August 31,1957, Malaysia's Independence Day. 

Originally the cricket green and rugby field belonging to the Royal Selangor Club, was reclaimed by Kuala Lumpur City Hall in 1987 and developed into an underground shopping mall-cum-car park, with a new field laid on top of it. Plaza Putra, as it is called, is also the site from which a 100-meter high flagpole rises.

Opposite to it is Sultan Abdul Samad building complex which houses Government offices.

The High Court building and the beautiful area with fountains and waterfalls are picturesque spots.

'Perdana Putra' is the Prime Minister's office.

Our next halt was at Harriston Boutique - where we got ....... to taste and buy handcrafted exotic chocolates in various flavors. But of course they were expensive being unique. We also got to see the cocoa tree and fruit and a description about the process of chocolate-making.

The last point of visit for the day was KL Tower, the tallest Telecommunication Tower in SE Asia and the 7th tallest in the world. It was completed in 1995. We went up to the observation deck  by elevator ( which takes 54 seconds to go up and 52 seconds to come down)  and also up to the Sky deck

enjoyed the beautiful 360 degree aerial view of Kuala Lumpur. I bought a souvenir of Petronas Towers from here as there seemed no scope for shopping in Malaysia; it was reasonably priced and more importantly, Indian currency was accepted. In fact, it eventually turned out that this was the only shopping I did here.

After this, it was tasty Indian meal at Olive Tree ....

after which we checked into our room in Hotel Pearl International.

A very nice, spacious, and invitingly cozy room beckoned us.

Day 2

The next morning, we enjoyed the bustling view from our room window.

We had continental breakfast, along with paratha and lentils before starting out for the day.

The morning was cloudy, so we carried our ponchos. 

We had seen the awe-inspiring Petronas Twin Towers several times during our city tour. Now we were excited to go there for a photo stop. The tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 and the tallest twin towers in the world till today, Petronas Towers are a landmark of Kuala Lumpur, along with the nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower. 

Our first halt for the day was at Petronas Twin Towers, 

where we had our group photo clicked by a professional - with a complimentary copy from our tour company to each of the families. 

Suria KLCC is an upmarket mall located at the feet of the Petronas Towers. 

We took a quick peek of one of the largest shopping malls in Malaysia, Suria KLCC, boasting around 300 world famous brand stores. Chinese New Year decorations greeted us everywhere.

We then had a halt outside the King's Palace.

This grand Istana Negara was opened in 2011. It replaced the old palace which was located at a different compound in central Kuala Lumpur.

Then we drove to take the cable car to Genting Highlands. It was still raining but we were glad we'd be spending most of the day indoors at Resorts World Genting (RWG). The place is a hill resort development comprising hotels, shopping malls, theme parks and casinos, perched on the peak of Mount Ulu Kali at 1,800 meters high. The integrated hill resort represents a popular weekend getaway, connected by major highways, and cable cars service accessible by two different cable cars, Genting Skyway which at its opening was the world's fastest and South East Asia's longest gondola lift, and the newer Awana Skyway. 

We took the former and as we went up, enjoyed the ten minute ride, watching through the rain-stained window, 

the greenery, the foliage and flora and 

the buildings nestled amidst them as we reached the top. 

The hill resort is the brain child of a single person Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, 

who managed to get approval for alienation of land. Then began the Herculean task of construction of access roads and then the first hotel by 1971. Thereafter followed more construction leading to expansion with malls and casinos. Resorts World Genting is the only legal land-based casino in Malaysia with two Casinos - Genting Casino and Sky Casino. With spring-like climate throughout, it is a favorite tourist attraction.

As we walked up to our lunch place, we did not fail to notice the string of eateries lining up - you could choose any cuisine of your choice. 

Well, the restaurant we had booked for lunch (12.30 - 1.30),

had Indian cuisine mainly and a dash of Chinese and SE Asian. 

And .... hold your breath - mouth-watering array of exotic desserts - 

cakes, pastries, ice creams and jellies and fruits of course.

We then had a couple of hours at our disposal to check out the Casino and for shopping. The Casino was a sprawling place packed with gamblers - we just went in and walked out in a few minutes. For a little bit, 

we watched the decorations and 

Audio-Visual treat as the decorations came down and up to the music.

Next we did a bit of window shopping, lounging around the branded shops in the mall, with no shopping list in hand and no shopping ideas in mind. 

Our legs yearned for rest. There were no seats in the vicinity. The handful outside the casino had already been taken. We noticed some tourists seated on the floor. Though this idea is strictly 'no no' for me, I had to give in to my weak legs and I plopped down next to my husband. We made ourselves more comfortable, removing our shoes and stretching our legs, leaning against the wall! My, my, what a bliss! An hour was enough for us to recover our energy.

Then we came down by cable car. By now the rain had stopped. As we had been indoors, we didn't need the poncho.

At 4 pm, we started our drive to the nearby Batu Caves and Murugan Temple. 

The limestone forming Batu Caves is said to be around 400 million years old. The natural formations of Batu Caves are awe-inspiring. An Indian trader K. Thamboosamy Pillai, inspired by the 'vel'-shaped entrance of the main cave, built and dedicated a temple to Lord Murugan within the caves in 1892. Batu Caves means 10th Caves / Hills for Lord Muruga, as there are six important holy shrines in India and four more in Malaysia (the three others in Malaysia are Kallumalai Temple, Tanneermalai Temple and Sannasimalai Temple). The cave is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India, dedicated to Lord Murugan. Wooden steps up to the Temple Cave built in 1920, have been replaced by 272 concrete steps. I doubted my capacity to climb 272 steps, but one look at the steps kindled my enthusiasm - wafer-thin steps - it should be a cake-walk and believe me, it was. We could climb up and come down in around 30-40 minutes.

Of the various cave temples that comprise the site, the largest and best known is the Temple Cave, housing several Hindu shrines beneath its high vaulted ceiling. 

Outside the caves stands Lord Murugan statue, the tallest statue of a Hindu deity in Malaysia, 140 ft in height and second tallest statue of a Hindu deity in the world (second only to the Kailashnath Mahadev Statue in Nepal). It is located at the Sri Murugan Perumal Kovil at the foot of Batu Caves. It took 3 years of construction; made of concrete, steel bars, and 300 liters of gold paint brought in from neighboring Thailand, it cost approximately 24 million rupees. It was unveiled in January 2006 during Thaipusam festival. Our visit was soon after the festival this year. We were told there would be surging crowds during the festival.

The towering golden Murugan statue is really impressive. 

It started raining and our group sat in the small restaurant, had coffee .......

some did shopping, some checked out the jack fruits and tender coconuts - it was as if we were in Kerala. I was specially happy to bump into Tamilians everywhere and strike up conversations with them in Tamil.

We drove back to KL and had good Indian dinner at Gem Restaurant after which we returned to our hotel. We then packed our bags to check out the next morning to proceed by coach to Singapore.

MAGICAL MACAU

After two days in Hong Kong, our tour group was heading for a one-day tour of Macau on 22 January 2018. Just an hour away from Hong Kong, but quite different from it, is Macau an autonomous territory of China. You'll need your passport to travel between these two regions. However, foreign tourists to Hong Kong generally have no problem entering Macau with a free short term stamp on their passport. 

The same country but separate, that’s the best way to describe the relationship of Hong Kong and Macau with China. But while these former colonies and now special administrative regions of China are self-governing, and have their own laws and distinct identities, they are all three drawing closer. This is also true of currency. China, Hong Kong, and Macau also all have their own currencies but where we can use which currency can be a little baffling. The Macau Pataca or MOP, is the currency of Macau. It is on par with the Hong Kong Dollar (equal to 8 plus INR) which is a semi-official second currency in Macau and the most popular as it can be used just about everywhere. The Chinese Yuan is usually accepted in hotels, casinos, and upmarket restaurants but is not in common use and won’t be ​taken in most shops or on public transport. Considering these facts, all of us stuck to the HKD.

Our Tour Manager instructed the men folk  to dress in formal clothes - avoid shorts and casual slip on footwear, as Casinos have dress codes. We had also been advised to carry a couple of Indian snacks too - just in case - though of course we would be taken to an Indian restaurant for lunch. 

The mega-resort and casino center of the East, Macau is the new gambling resort capital of the world, with 5 of the world's 10 largest casino resorts. At the same time, there are also old Portuguese sites to see, including UNESCO World Heritage sites.

We can travel from Hong Kong to Macau by air, ferry or road. Though taking a bus is possible, the ferry is the most preferred, as this is much faster than going by bus through Shenzhen. Cotai Water Jet plying between Hong Kong and Macau at regular frequency, covering the distance in an hour, is the most popular, as it saves time and money. With a seating capacity of 245 seats, it has a speed of 35 - 50 knots. 

We had to take the 11 o'clock Cotai Jetfoil from Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal. We reached the Ferry Terminal at 9 am. It was a sprawling place - like an airport terminal but much less crowded. We went through Immigration which was pretty quick. 

Then we spent our time hopping in and out of the attractively decorated shops dotting the terminal. 

Boarding was announced 15 minutes prior to the cruise and we occupied our comfortable seats. The one hour cruise was relaxing and enjoyable. We alighted at Cotai Terminal, closest to the Cotai Strip area with the biggest casinos such as the Venetian, the City of Dreams across the street, as well as the Macau International Airport. Our local guide greeted us and took us to our coach. He spoke good English. We picked up one useful Chinese expression - "Nee how?" meaning "How are you?" I used it very naturally with a couple of acquaintances - because it was very easy for me to remember. "Nee' in Tamil means "you" and "how" is typically English!

We enjoyed the drive through the city. We saw Kun Iam Statue, made of special bronze and 20 meters tall, dedicated to Goddess of Mercy. The statue faces Macau in order to protect it symbolically. It is built on a dome shaped like a lotus flower, which houses an ecumenical center providing information on Buddhism. 

We then explored the Ruins of St. Paul, a 17th-century complex which includes what was originally St. Paul's College and the 17th century Portuguese Church of St. Paul

also known as "Mater Dei". The ruins were restored by the Macanese government into a museum. 

Today, the ruins are one of Macau's best known landmarks. In 2005, along with A Ma Temple, the ruins were officially listed a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There is also a Museum adjacent to this.

As we were walking back to our coach, we did not fail to notice the two-wheelers neatly parked along the narrow streets. 

The apartments there were small, clothes were hanging on the clothesline in the balconies and reminded us of India.

Some spots looked like parts of Europe, others were typically Asian. We also saw the Penha Hill, the third highest hill of Macau. After that we went to 'Taste of India' for Indian buffet lunch.

Everywhere eye-catching red lantern decorations and festoons swayed to usher in the Chinese New Year.

Our next halt was Maa Gok Miu better known as the A Ma Temple - a temple to the Chinese sea-goddess Mazu.  Built in 1488 during the Ming dynasty, the temple is one of the oldest in Macau.

It is dedicated to Honored Mother A-Ma, a goddess revered throughout the South of China.  The goddess chiefly looks after sailors and seafarers.  Although she came from Fujian Province, the Macanese have adopted her as their own and, over time, a local version of her story was created.  They say that the young girl was looking for free passage from Fujian to Guangdong, but all the wealthy junk boat captains refused.  A poor young fisherman offered to take her but as they set off, a huge storm wrecked all of the boats at sea except theirs. Her magical blessing brought the two of them to Macau safely, where she vanished. Later, she appeared as a goddess and it is at the spot that the A-Ma Temple now stands. The name Macau is thought to be derived from the name of the temple. It is said that in the mid 16th century, when the Portuguese sailors landed at the coast just outside the temple and asked the name of the place, the natives replied Maa-gok ("The Pavilion of the Mother"). The Portuguese then named the peninsula "Macau". The upturned roof ridges are a distinctive feature of the temple.

We had the chance to try out an interesting experiment there. There was a large shallow metal vessel of water. We had to rub the sides with our hands with a wish in our hearts. If the water started 'dancing' (spurting up), the wish would be granted. Most of our group tried their skill and were happy to be successful - most of them had wished for luck at the Casino in the Venetian later in the day!

We then visited Macau Tower. We took the elevator to the 58th floor and enjoyed the bird's eye view of Macau. We could also see enthusiasts going for 'bungee jumping' from the 61st floor. We proceeded to the next level - 61st floor. 

Its open observation deck offers not only panoramic views and restaurants and shopping malls but also offers a variety of adventurous activities like 'Sky walk', a thrilling walking tour around the outer rim. More adventurous is 'sky jump' (the highest commercial 'sky jump' in the world - 233 m) and Bungee Jump from the Tower's outer rim. We saw the bungee jumpers in action from close quarters. I don't know what they felt but I could definitely feel my stomach churn.  

We came down and went out to the open space where we got to see the bungee jumpers come down all the way and land. Our Tour Manager had to herd us back into the coach warning us that we would lose precious minutes out of an hour at the Venetian if we didn't hurry.

Both of us were excited to be visiting The Venetian Macao - not for the thrill of gambling but because we would be able to compare this Venetian with the Venetian Las Vegas where we had spent two wonderful days when our son had taken us on a trip to Vegas in 2013. We had been overawed by the sprawling splendor and razzle dazzle of the place. How would Venetian Macau turn out in comparison for us? Agreed it is not fair to compare but I couldn't help it.

The Venetian Macao, officially opened on 28 August 2007, we learnt is a 10,500,000-square-foot, 39-storey, luxury hotel and casino resort on the Cotai Strip in Macau, the gambling capital of the world. Owned by the American Las Vegas Sands company, it is modeled on 

its sister casino resort, The Venetian, Las Vegas, the second largest hotel in the world, and the largest resort on the Las Vegas Strip, 

with 4,049 rooms, 3,068 suites.

But its casino makes up only 120,000 sq. ft. of gaming space. 

The seventh-largest building in the world by floor area, The Venetian, Macao boasts of the largest casino in the world 

with a whopping 550,000 square feet of casino space – with 3,400 slot machines and 800 gambling tables. The gambling area is so large it’s divided into four themed gaming areas: Imperial House, Golden Fish, Phoenix, and Red Dragon. Basically, it’s the Disneyland of the gambling world.  The largest single structure hotel building in Asia, The Venetian Macao has 3,000 suites, a 15,000-seat Cotai Arena for entertainment and sports events.

As we went around the Venetian Macao, we found it a replica of the Vegas Venetian, from the lobby to the Grand Canal Shoppes, including the gondola, St. Mark's Square, paintings on the roof, the artificial sky, Casino area ...... Did we gamble? Well, we had planned to utilize the gift of 20 HKD gifted to each of us by the company. But the slot machines were not friendly or cooperative. We didn't bother to find assistance or instructions to operate them as the Casino was jam packed. So we reconverted our bill again to 20 HKD. The non-gamblers like us spent some time watching the enthusiastic ones at the various tables and then moved around the magnificent place savoring its splendor for an hour.

We boarded the coach at 5.30 pm and started driving to Cotai Terminal. 

On the way, we got to see only a few more Casino resorts, though we had been told there were some 40 Casinos around. 

A short drive, and we were at the Cotai Terminal to catch our ferry back to Hong Kong. We had been advised by our Tour Manager to walk confidently through Immigration without faltering or halting unnecessarily so that we wouldn't rouse suspicion or get randomly pulled over for questioning. As luck would have it, the youngest couple from our group were stopped for questioning but were lucky enough to be let off within minutes, so they could also join us in the ferry.

We sat through the pleasant one hour cruise from Macau to Hong Kong, leisurely chewing the cud of the day's fantastic experiences in Macau.