Kuala Lumpur Day 2: Batu Caves | Mederka Saqure | Jalan Alor | Bukit Bintang
For the our second day in Malaysia, Paolo and I managed to hike at Batu Caves, explore the Dark Cave, stroll around Merdeka Square, walk around the City Central, have super late lunch in Arch Cafe, walk back to the Square, failed to tour the KL Gallery, went to Genting Square, have Persian dinner in Bukit Bintang, strolled around Jalan Alor and have drinks in Bukit Bintang. So I basically summarized everything for you guys but no I have tons of side stories!!
As expected Paolo and I woke up really late on our second day. The lack of sleep and the relentless walking the prior day exhausted us that we just could not find the energy to wake up the next day. As expected, we missed the free breakfast (actually, there was really no breakfast, agoda lured us, lol) and opted to eat in one of the restaurants along the street of Jalan Raja Alang, where our hotel, Bagasta Guesthouse is located. It was always an adventure to eat along the streets and learn about a place culture's through food. I had my super favorite Roti Canai (which was pronounced as cha-nai, not ka-nay, as I thought), and some curry flavored beef that I just randomly ordered cause it was a carinderia style restaurant. Of course, I always loved having the classic milk tea on the streets cause nothing can ever beat the classic.
After our brunch, Paolo and I rode an uber to take us to Batu Caves. The fare costed us around 17RM (Php170), which we still find very unbelievable compared to the uber and taxi charges we have here (or even in Singapore or Australia). Anyways, we were also surprised that we booked the same driver we drove us from KLCC to Menara tower the day before. He was so jolly and so entertaining that we enjoyed our 30 minute drive to Selangor, where Batu Caves is located.
Pigeons welcomed us upon arriving at the Batu Caves. Very eager to have photos taken, we bought pigeon feeds, just like the other tourists for 5 RM and fed the pigeons and enjoyed the experience. Afterwards, we also watched monkeys steal food from tourists, have our photos taken before we decided to hike the hundreds of steps to the top of the temple. Before we can proceed, I had to rent a sarong for 3 RM cause ladies in shorts were not allowed to enter the temple.
photos of batu caves
After 272 steps, and battling with monkeys who were trying to steal things from our bags, we finally reached the top of the temple. The cave is being constructed when we went there so we could not really see the beauty of the caves. Still, Paolo and I enjoyed looking at the Hindu structures and the observing the culture in the cave.
After touring the top of the temple, Paolo felt the need for more adventure so he decided that we do the Dark Cave Tour. For only RM 35 per head, we get to explore the dark cave and learn from its ecosystem and habitat. It was indeed very dark that we had to rely on flashlights as we tour. Thousands of bats live in the cave and other endemic species hence the cave emit a certain smell that only the adventurous ones could tolerate. I honestly had a migrane while doing the tour cause I could not take the strong smell inside the cave but I pushed myself to tolerate it cause I wanted to explore, learn and discover and most importantly, I don't want to disappoint my husband. (Haha)
It took us 3 hours to complete the whole Batu Caves tour, most of which was spent taking hundreds of photos. After resting for a while, Paolo and I booked an Uber again to take us to Merdeka Square -- that took us roughly 30 minutes. Paolo and I were so amazed at the sight of Merdeka Square (also known as Detaran Merdeka), for it gave us a beautiful sight of Malaysia's culture and history. We spent half an hour in the square, of course to take more photos before we walk our way to Arch Cafe to have our super late lunch.
For only 15 RM (Php 160+), we get to enjoy a full meal, with fruits, a cake and unlimited coffee!! I got to enjoy my favorite Hainanese Chicken and savored the unlimited (and very strong) Malaysian coffee to give us more energy for the rest of the day. We took our time to eat and rest cause our Batu Cave adventure was too tiring that we just wanted to sleep but no we still had a lot of things to do. We headed back to the square to enter KL Gallery but miserably failed cause the gallery was closed already when we arrived (and we took so much time to eat and take photos),
Anyway, since it was 7 already, we ubered our way to Berjaya Square to meet with a a friend (and now an author, woot woot), Kath Derla, who is now based in Malaysia. Felt really good to meet with a friend when you travel to another country cause you get to catch up on life and things. It was also the first time I got to meet Kath's husband, Jester who was actually the man behind her book, Before I Do (which is a super good book, especially for those ladies who are getting married, thinking of getting married and afraid of getting married).
Kath and Jester took us to a Persian restaurant (the name I forgot) and treated us for dinner. I love trying out other cuisines and I also like Persian cuisines cause of the kebabs and the pita bread. Tourist tip: make sure that you always have your bottled water or tumblers with you cause drinking water in restaurants is so EXPENSIVE. We warmed up and talked about life, plans and dreams. Honestly, I am very excited for Kath and projects she is about to launch. Afterwards, the couple brought us to Jalan Alor, the popular street with a lot of chinese restaurants (imagine hawkers!) where you can find the BEST SALTED EGG SQUID ever!! (Hindi ko sya makalimutan guys kasi sobrang sarap nya). Tourist tio: Food prices in Jalan Alor are expensive and comparable to restaurants in the mall cause it is a tourist spot. So don't get surprised if the food there will range from 18-30 RM and up (Php 180-300 and up).
After dinner, it was our turn to treat the lovely couple. Since we are with older (pun intended, haha) boys, we found ourselves to Bukit Bintang, the party spot in Kuala Lumpur. Paolo insisted that we pay for our beer and cocktails as we continue our interesting conversations. Tourist tip: Beer and alcohol are EXPENSIVE in Malaysia. A bottle of beer or a cocktail will cost you around 22-25 RM (P220-250).
Overall, our second day in Malaysia was yet another tiring endeavor. I have initially planned to include Sunway Lagoon to our itinerary but we skipped it cause we lacked time (and energy). It was a jampacked day but the husband knows that I love accomplishing and seeing a lot of things every time we're out of the country. It may not be a romantic day but it was an adventure-packed event.
After our brunch, Paolo and I rode an uber to take us to Batu Caves. The fare costed us around 17RM (Php170), which we still find very unbelievable compared to the uber and taxi charges we have here (or even in Singapore or Australia). Anyways, we were also surprised that we booked the same driver we drove us from KLCC to Menara tower the day before. He was so jolly and so entertaining that we enjoyed our 30 minute drive to Selangor, where Batu Caves is located.
Pigeons welcomed us upon arriving at the Batu Caves. Very eager to have photos taken, we bought pigeon feeds, just like the other tourists for 5 RM and fed the pigeons and enjoyed the experience. Afterwards, we also watched monkeys steal food from tourists, have our photos taken before we decided to hike the hundreds of steps to the top of the temple. Before we can proceed, I had to rent a sarong for 3 RM cause ladies in shorts were not allowed to enter the temple.
photos of batu caves
After 272 steps, and battling with monkeys who were trying to steal things from our bags, we finally reached the top of the temple. The cave is being constructed when we went there so we could not really see the beauty of the caves. Still, Paolo and I enjoyed looking at the Hindu structures and the observing the culture in the cave.
After touring the top of the temple, Paolo felt the need for more adventure so he decided that we do the Dark Cave Tour. For only RM 35 per head, we get to explore the dark cave and learn from its ecosystem and habitat. It was indeed very dark that we had to rely on flashlights as we tour. Thousands of bats live in the cave and other endemic species hence the cave emit a certain smell that only the adventurous ones could tolerate. I honestly had a migrane while doing the tour cause I could not take the strong smell inside the cave but I pushed myself to tolerate it cause I wanted to explore, learn and discover and most importantly, I don't want to disappoint my husband. (Haha)
It took us 3 hours to complete the whole Batu Caves tour, most of which was spent taking hundreds of photos. After resting for a while, Paolo and I booked an Uber again to take us to Merdeka Square -- that took us roughly 30 minutes. Paolo and I were so amazed at the sight of Merdeka Square (also known as Detaran Merdeka), for it gave us a beautiful sight of Malaysia's culture and history. We spent half an hour in the square, of course to take more photos before we walk our way to Arch Cafe to have our super late lunch.
For only 15 RM (Php 160+), we get to enjoy a full meal, with fruits, a cake and unlimited coffee!! I got to enjoy my favorite Hainanese Chicken and savored the unlimited (and very strong) Malaysian coffee to give us more energy for the rest of the day. We took our time to eat and rest cause our Batu Cave adventure was too tiring that we just wanted to sleep but no we still had a lot of things to do. We headed back to the square to enter KL Gallery but miserably failed cause the gallery was closed already when we arrived (and we took so much time to eat and take photos),
Anyway, since it was 7 already, we ubered our way to Berjaya Square to meet with a a friend (and now an author, woot woot), Kath Derla, who is now based in Malaysia. Felt really good to meet with a friend when you travel to another country cause you get to catch up on life and things. It was also the first time I got to meet Kath's husband, Jester who was actually the man behind her book, Before I Do (which is a super good book, especially for those ladies who are getting married, thinking of getting married and afraid of getting married).
Kath and Jester took us to a Persian restaurant (the name I forgot) and treated us for dinner. I love trying out other cuisines and I also like Persian cuisines cause of the kebabs and the pita bread. Tourist tip: make sure that you always have your bottled water or tumblers with you cause drinking water in restaurants is so EXPENSIVE. We warmed up and talked about life, plans and dreams. Honestly, I am very excited for Kath and projects she is about to launch. Afterwards, the couple brought us to Jalan Alor, the popular street with a lot of chinese restaurants (imagine hawkers!) where you can find the BEST SALTED EGG SQUID ever!! (Hindi ko sya makalimutan guys kasi sobrang sarap nya). Tourist tio: Food prices in Jalan Alor are expensive and comparable to restaurants in the mall cause it is a tourist spot. So don't get surprised if the food there will range from 18-30 RM and up (Php 180-300 and up).
After dinner, it was our turn to treat the lovely couple. Since we are with older (pun intended, haha) boys, we found ourselves to Bukit Bintang, the party spot in Kuala Lumpur. Paolo insisted that we pay for our beer and cocktails as we continue our interesting conversations. Tourist tip: Beer and alcohol are EXPENSIVE in Malaysia. A bottle of beer or a cocktail will cost you around 22-25 RM (P220-250).
Overall, our second day in Malaysia was yet another tiring endeavor. I have initially planned to include Sunway Lagoon to our itinerary but we skipped it cause we lacked time (and energy). It was a jampacked day but the husband knows that I love accomplishing and seeing a lot of things every time we're out of the country. It may not be a romantic day but it was an adventure-packed event.
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