K M Cheng-Travel Journal: May 2024

" LIFE is short. Each moment you have is precious. Treasure every second, because you never know when will be the last time you see someone "

My Singapore cousin brother Sung was in town for 5 days (May 6 > 10 2024) & stayed in my house for 2 nights (May 6 & 7). On Day 2, I took him to pay a visit to my elder sister Inn's home in Taman Equine, Sri Kembangan, Selangor & had a re-union lunch together with my wife & 3 sisters. After the lunch, using LRT & MRT, I accompanied my Singapore cousin brother to a number of iconic touristy places in Kuala Lumpur city centre (time to say Hello to Kuala Lumpur as my cousin has not visited KL for over a decade ! ).

On Day 3 & 4, my brother Weng joined our group & together with my wife & cousin Sung, 4 of us had a jolly good time in this memorable outstation trip & visited a number of touristy places (fishing village, charcoal factory, lake garden, shopping malls, museum, eco & recreation park, cave temples, a new Maxwell Hill base camp etc) in Kuala Sepetang, Taiping & Ipoh, all in the state of Perak; the furthest (Kuala Sepetang) is approximately 290km from my home place, Subang Jaya, Selangor.

Gloomy weather (heavy downpour, south west monsoon season) in late afternoon during our stay for two consecutive days in Taiping & Ipoh made our visit a bit messy but this did not dampen our spirits & our group managed to visit the major touristy places as planned !

My travel buddies: my wife, cousin Sung & my younger brother Weng

Pun Chun Restaurant, Bidor, Perak

Port Weld Fishing Village
Kuala Sepetang, Perak

Spritzer EcoPark
Taiping, Perak

Foh San Dim Sum Restaurant
Ipoh, Perak

Saloma Link, Kampung Baru
Kuala Lumpur

Day 1 Monday May 6 2024 (16.00 > 17.00) - picked up my Singapore cousin brother Sung from First Coach Terminal, Subang Parade, Subang Jaya, Selangor & adjourned for a light refreshment & chat in Bungus Kaw Kaw, Empire Subang Mall, Subang Jaya, a treat from KM.

Day 2 Tuesday May 7 2024 (10.30 > 13.30 & 14.00 > 22.30) - a morning visit to my sister's house in Taman Equine + lunch; accompanying my Singapore cousin brother Sung's visit (early afternoon) to major touristy places in city centre, Kuala Lumpur & savouring the local food. Visited the Little Demon Lane, Lorong Petaling 2, Petaling Street Market, KLREX, Saloma Link, Suria KLCC, KLCC Park, Petronas Twin Tower, Pavilion KL, Bukit Bintang, Lot 10 Hutong & TRX Exchange Mall.

1) Lunch (12.00 > 13.00) with my sister Inn, Peng, Mei & cousin Sung & my wife in Hakka Zhuang Restaurant, Taman Equine, Sri Kembangan, Selangor - savoured 5 Chinese Hakka & tai chow dishes (Rm114) + one pot of Chinese tea (Rm15) + Rice (Rm2.20 x 4) = Rm146 (US$54) inclusive of service tax, a treat from my sister Inn & Mei.

Hakka Braised Pork Rm26 (US$5.40)

Cantonese Style Ying Yong
Rm21 (US$4.70)

Stir-fried Kale Rm25 (US$5.20)

Braised Tofu Rm18 (US$3.75)

Hakka Yam Abacus Rm24 (US$5)

Day 2 Travel Itinerary: Rapid KL LRT & MRT train rides from SS15, Subang Jaya > Pasar Seni > Kampung Baru; KLCC > Pasar Seni > Bukit Bintang > TRX Exchange > Pasar Seni > SS15, Subang Jaya (5 train rides Rm7.50 senior citizens 50% discount)

2) Little Demon Lane (Kwai Chai Hong), Lorong Panggung, City Centre, Kuala Lumpur - a quaint little back alley, a unique & Instagram attraction in city centre of Kuala Lumpur, visitors can re-live a part of Chinatown in the old glory days of the 1960s, creating meaningful & memorable experiences !

3) Lorong Petaling 2, City Centre, Kuala Lumpur - a beautiful lane rich in history, learning Kuala Lumpur Chinatown history via wall murals !

4) Petaling Street Market (Chinatown), Kuala Lumpur - bustling shopping district with haggling vendors offering a range of goods from clothing to food.

5) KLREX, Jalan Sultan, City Centre, Kuala Lumpur - once an iconic cinema in downtown KL, rejuvenated into a creative community hub featuring music, arts, F & B & books etc. My favourite meet-up place with my travel buddies in Kuala Lumpur !

6) Guan Di Temple, Jalan Tun H S Lee, Kuala Lumpur - a Malaysian based Taoist temple, founded in 1887, one of the oldest temples in Malaysia, closed at the time of our visit.

7) Sri Maha Mariamman Temple, Jalan Tun H S Lee, Kuala Lumpur - oldest Hindu temple in Kuala Lumpur, founded in 1873, located at the edge of Chinatown in Jalan Bandar; in 1968, a new structure was built featuring the ornate "Raja Gopuram" tower in the style of South Indian temples.

8) Central Market, Kuala Lumpur city Centre - oldest surviving marketplace established since 1888 !

9) Kasturi Walk, Jalan Hang Kasturi, Kuala Lumpur City Centre - a covered walkway of street food & souvenir kiosks developed by the Central Market.

10) Pintasan Soloma (Saloma Link), Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur - a 69m combined pedestrian & bicyclist bridge across the Klang River in Kuala Lumpur, joining the districts of Kampung Baru & Kuala Lumpur City Centre, scenic view of Petronas Twin Tower & Kampung Baru village.

11) Petronas Twin Tower, Kuala Lumpur City Centre - built in 1993 & opened to public on Aug 31 1999, an interlinked pair of 88 story skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur standing at 451.9 meters. A tourist haven, popular touristy places are Suria KLCC, KLCC Park, Petronas Twin Tower Observation Deck & Linked Bridge, KLCC Aquaria etc

12) Cityscape nearby the Petronas Twin Tower

13) KLCC Park, Level 2, Suria, Kuala Lumpur City Centre - an urban park, jogging path, lush greeneries, children playground, wading pool, most ideal for family picnic & outing !

14) Small eat (taufu fah or soya bean curd) in Petaling Street, Kuala Lumpur, each of us savoured a bowl of warm soya bean curd @Rm2.50 (US$0.50)

Soya Bean Curd Rm2.50 (US$0.50)

15) Light refreshment in Bacha Coffee (a newly opened cafe from Marrakech, Morocco, established in 1910) Ground Floor, Suria KLCC Petronas Twin Tower, Kuala Lumpur City Centre, savoured 2 sliced of candied fruit & almond cakes Rm11 x 2 & 2 fresh fruit juice drink Rm20 x 2 = totalled Rm62 (US$13.00, a treat from cousin Sung)

16) Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur - a busy commercial, shopping & entertainment district of Kuala Lumpur, a leisure evening walk.

17) Lot 10 Hutong Food Court, Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur

18) Pavilion Kuala Lumpur - a premier shopping mall in Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur

19) Cityscape (by Night) of Kuala Lumpur as viewed from TRX Exchange Mall, a newly opened shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur.

20) Dinner in Nanyang Cafe, Concourse Level, The Exchange TRX, Kuala Lumpur, savoured a plate of Special pork knuckle in preserved bean sauce with rice Rm18.90 ++, pork chop with curry rice Rm22.90 ++ & a hot Nanyang Cham Rm7.90 totalled Rm57.65 (a treat from KM)