Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia!

I left Butterworth at 8:00am and I arrived on time in Kuala Lumpur at 2:30pm. The trains in Malaysia are clean, modern and of a European standard. Each passenger has its own allocated airline-type seat and you can watch a movie or a documentary on the televisions located at the end of each carriage. There are also dining cars where you can get something to eat or drink. When I arrived in Kuala Lumpur, I walked about a kilometre to  the Hotel City Inn, located on Jalan Sultan in Chinatown. I had stayed there before and I had found the rooms to be basic, but clean and comfortable. I got single room with an attached bathroom, for two nights for RM50 per night.

A single basic room with bathroom at the Hotel City Inn in the centre of K. L. cost me, RM50 per night.

The birthplace and the centre of Kuala Lumpur.

That afternoon, after I had something to eat, I took a taxi to Imbi Plaza located on Jalan Imbi. Imbi Plaza is three floors of shops, selling computer hardware and software at very cheap prices. Most of the software for sale was pirated, but extremely cheap! Some of the shops even sell VCD's.  Imbi Plaza is heaven for computer geeks like myself, but probably hell for somebody like Bill Gates! After I  wandered around Imbi Plaza for a hour or so, I had some dinner and then I did some shopping at the night market at Chinatown.

The Batu Caves on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur.

The next morning after I had breakfast, I caught a bus to the Batu Caves, which are located on the northern outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. On the bus, I met a Pom, who had traveled overland all the way from Moscow, via the Trans-Mongolian Railway! It was interesting talking to him, as I hope to do a similar journey eventually! The Batu Caves are in a towering limestone formation and where discovered about 100 years ago. There is a Hindu Shrine located inside and it is a pilgrimage centre during the annual Thaipusam festival.

Chinatown Market in the centre of Kuala Lumpur. Notice the pirated software for sale on the right hand side of the photo!

When I got back to Kuala Lumpur, I did some shopping at the market in Chinatown and then I had some dinner at one of the hawker stalls. It seemed like two-thirds of the things for sale at the market in Chinatown, were copies or pirated! There was fake Lacoste Polo Shirts, Rolex Watches, Gucci belts and handbags. I saw pirated movies on either VHS video cassette or VCD, as well as pirated PC software. I was offered four pirated current release movies on VHS video cassette for AUD$20!! Some of the stalls have TV's and VCR's where you can check the quality of the video's. I went back to my hotel and went to bed, as I was leaving early for Singapore by train the next morning.