Malaysia

I went to Malaysia for about a week, specifically Langkawi and Kuala Lumpur on a workation of sorts. The entire trip was sort of planned within a week prior to my departure. A few snapshots and some thoughts about how my entire trip was.

I booked my flights about 4 days before my date of departure and cost me about Rs. 38,000/- which is damn cheap and in hindsight was well worth it. The visa took about 5 minutes because its online and available instantly to Indian passport holders. Hotels were handled by my friends from Dubai.

All 4 of my flights were Malindo Air and after my trip i can safely say that my experience was fantastic. They instantly gave me emergency section seats on both my flights to and from Malaysia and front seats with the most leg space for my flights to and from Langkawi. I didn't even realise when i landed in Kuala Lumpur from Bombay. I just slept peacefully during the entire flight. I had to go to another airport about 40 minutes away from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to catch my connecting flight to Langkawi.

Some pictures of Langkawi Airport -

Since all of us were coming by different flights, we met at the airport post landing and went to the hotel in an Uber. Uber works like a charm in Langkawi and Kuala Lumpur. Most rides in Langkawi never went above MYR 10 and that too was the maximum i paid to go anywhere. All rides were roughly around MYR 5-7 . MYR 1 is around Rs. 15/- and when you divide by 4 it is practically nothing. We just relied on Uber once we realised how cheap it was, especially in Langkawi because it is a duty free island.

We stayed at a beach resort called Frangipani in Langkawi. Its a small resort with its own private beach with your usual Spas, gym and bars in it.

Frangipani is a typical beach resort which is 5 minutes away from the town center Pantai Cenang. You'll find all kinds of stays in Langkawi. Cheap hotels, backpacker centers, homestays airbnbs to your 5 star retreats. But anything not in the town center or nearby is a waste because in my opinion, Pantai was a fantastic place. Busy streets full of street shops, wonderful public beaches and amazing local food places. You'll never be bored unless you stay in some place which is far from there.

My hotel was just 5 minutes away and uber was just MYR 5 each time. And Ubers just come to your spot. I never had to call the driver or anything, they just come. Which is fantastic!

Since it was the first day and we were all tired after our flights, we just walked around Pantai Cenang and explored the place. Plenty of shops and stalls to keep you busy. Plenty of legit and cheap foot massage, pedicure and manicures, body massage places too. No, not those kinds. Legit. This ain't Thailand.

On our second day, we made our way to Langkawi cable car and sky bridge. I had not bothered to google much about the places. I wanted to go in blind and wing it each day. That is the complete opposite of how i travel. For some reason, i knew it would be alright if i went unplanned. And i was right. It was amazing.

Langkawi cable car takes you to the top of Gunung Machinchang, a mountain. From there you can see different types of panoramic views of Langkawi from different heights. You have different platforms and each of them give a superb view.

We had fantastic weather that day for such a trip. Neither too cloudy nor too sunny. It even rained a bit. It just made the views even more better.

After you reach the top, you basically walk through a series of bridges and enjoy some breath-taking scenery of the island. There are restaurants at every stop and you can sit and chill.

Depending on your fitness and pace, the trek could last anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour. Its a very refreshing trek. It is very humid in Malaysia, especially Langkawi so having liquids around is absolutely essential.

Langkawi Skybridge is AMAZING. Its a small bridge but we spent nearly 2 hours on it because it was so beautiful up there and also because the weather was perfect. Clouds passed through the bridge twice while we were on it. From being able to see the sea and the entire island, to not even being able to see the bridge for 5 minutes. One of the most memorable natural experiences of my life.

After nearly 2 hours we climb down and make our way back to the ground. We were hungry so we made our way to the Elephant Cafe in the premises.

We spent nearly 5 hours in total at Langkawi Cable Car and Skybridge. I highly recommend this place to everyone. Everything from start to finish was excellent and enjoyable.

After getting fresh and taking a nap, we headed to Pantai Cenang beach which is a public beach and one of the best.

The next day was spent in street shopping and finding a good restaurant in Kuah. Kuah felt like a dead city so we just came back to Pantai Cenang to spend an evening there. 2 nights in Langkawi are not enough. And this place should be the last leg of your trip since its so damn cheap. I HATE street shopping, but in Langkawi, i just gave in because it was so good.

People in Malaysia and Langkawi say that this place is commercialized and now has lost its charm and what not. They clearly have not seen Goa.

Anyway, so that's Langkawi. Onwards to Kuala Lumpur.

KL is the capital and its as good or bad as Bombay. I felt right at home there. The city comes alive every evening and starts shutting down by 11 unless you are in one of those areas which is alive all night. The first three nights i was living at the JW Marriott in Butik Bintang, which is probably the most happening place in all of KL. Butik Bintang is also called "Arab Street" because a lot of Arabs live here and arabic food and culture is pretty obvious when you walk the entire area.

In the evening we went to Jalan Alor which is basically food street. Some of the most sensational street food anywhere in Kuala Lumpur is available here. The entire street is riddled with restaurants, shacks and carts serving all kinds of street food which ranges from Thai, Malay, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Filipino, Indian, Chinese, Cambodian, Japanese! You even have cuisine which is a mix of some or all of it. Seafood is huge here.

We did the typical tourist stuff in KL after this. Petronus Towers and the malls. KLCC Park, KLCC Bird Park (MUST DO!), KL Tower, Bar Street, KL Aquarium. All of this can be finished in 2 days. Here's a tip - Don't go to Petronus towers to see the view from the top. Skip the Petronus entirely and go straight to KL Tower. It offers a much better experience and much better views of the city. Do not go to Petronus.

KL Aquarium is great. They have a section where you can touch certain fishes and sea animals. Its neither too big nor too small. Kids will love it and its a great place to beat the heat.

If you are a comic book fan like me and especially a DC Fan, then this is unmissable. Its basically Mc Donalds food themed to DC Characters. I loved it.

The street i was living near comes alive at night. From 6 till 3 in the night, you will see people all around having a good time.

Since we were in an arabic area we decided to have some arabic food. If you are in Bukit Bintang, go to Tarbush Restaurant. Fantastic food with great service.

Next day we went to Batu Caves. This is near KL and about an hour away by road and a little more by Public Transport. Its free and there are no entry charges.

You need to climb about 300-350 steps to reach the first base and some more to reach the second base. These are ancient hindu caves with immense religious importance. The caves were undergoing some renovation work when we were there but they're great. Do not feed or encourage the monkeys.

There is a 45 minute Dark Cave tour you can do which is paid and takes you into the darkness and shows you the natural side of this place. If i was a little more adventurous i'd have done this. Honestly the whole cave system smells of Bat piss and shit. Its a VERY strong smell and it put me off from even considering this.

Since this is a place of hindu importance, the entire complex has AMAZING hindu vegetarian cuisine.

Next day we went to Kuala Lumpur Birdpark. Which is basically one giant bird cage in which you are inside along with the birds. You walk amongs birds!

And now for some KL street scenes. The city is a mixed bag. Great to walk around in some parts.

The reason i mentioned above for skipping Petronus and going to KL Tower is because KL Tower has less crowds and they even have an open air view of KL at their highest decks. You can even get a package which not only gives you access to the open air deck but also lunch, evening tea or dinner at their revolving restaurant on top. Apart from this, they dont push you around like a bunch of sheep and can spend as much time at the top as you want.

After this we went to Bar Street near Bukit Bintang. As the name suggests, the entire street is full of bars, pubs, discos, etc.

On the last day, we chilled in malls, shopped a bit and called it a day with lunch at Greyhound Cafe near our Hotel. Its a Thai cafe chain with some great modern takes on Thai food.

Malaysia was cheap and easy to get around. Very tourist friendly outside of KL and there is so much to explore there. We did not cover more than 5% of what Malaysia has to offer. But from whatever i saw and experienced on this trip, I'm sure I'll be back with more time and add more places.