Malaysia highlights
Kuala Lumpur
Cosmopolitan KL will astonish you with its mix of architectures and cultures. Malay, Chinese, Indian and European people work side by side, and in spite of rivalries and latent tensions, eastern traditions of harmony and self-control keep tempers in check. Before you plunge into the warren of streets and markets, get your bearings from the public observation platform of the KL Tower on Bukit Nanas (Pineapple Hill) right in the city centre. This concrete telecommunications tower has incorporated Islamic features into its design and stands 421 m (1.381 ft) tall. Even higher, the twin Petronas Towers in the Ampang district took the title of the world's tallest buildings in 1996. Each 452-m (1,483-ft) tower rests on a raft supported by 104 piles.
Lake Gardens, a park southwest of the centre, is a local favourite, with a boating lake and the National Monument, a memorial to the jungle warriors of World War II and the Emergency. To one side stands the Parliament Building and to the other, the National Museum with its high sloping roofs and mosaic murals. The museum presents a panorama of Malaysian life, culture, flora and fauna.
The National Mosque (Masjid Negara), completed in 1965, is the biggest in South-East Asia, with expanses of white marble. The nearby Railway Station built in 1910 looks like a Moghul palace in India. Politicians and financiers have joined the rubber planters in the mock-Tudor Selangor Club facing the green Padang, where you might see a cricket match in progress. Opposite, the Federal Secretariat is a magnificent mix of Victorian and Moorish.
Much of the bustle and excitement of KL is centered in the districts of Jalan Sultan Ismail and Jalam P. Ramlee, where you can find the city's finest shopping galleries, hotels and dining opportunities. More entertainment awaits at Asian Heritage Row, where traditional pre-war shop houses have been skillfully transformed into bars, cafes and restaurants. a world of delicious cuisines is represented here, with particularly exceptional Vietnamese, Lebanese and Turkish eateries.
At night, head for Petaling Street in Chinatown, east of the station and the Kelang River, for the hubbub, the stalls piled with exotic produce and the food. On a Saturday night, don't miss the Malay Sunday market (for the Malays, the day starts on the evening before).
On the outskirts of the city, the spectacular Batu Caves have attracted and impressed visitors for more than a century. Sacred to Malaysia's Hindu population, the caves contain shrines, temples, statues and colourful wall paintings, and vary in size up to 100 m.
Pangkor Island
A lovely tropical offshore island, Pangkor is known for its fine beaches of white sand. Some are deserted, while next to others are chalet-style resort hotels at the edge of the rainforest, with superb water sports, as well as tennis and golf. Morning and evening are the best time for a stroll along the beaches, a visit to a fishing village or to the one historic site, an old Dutch fort south of Pangkor village. The island has its own airport with flights to KL and Singapore.
Close to Pangkor, the tiny 120-ha (300-acre) island of Pangkor Laut is an utterly idyllic retreat. The resort here has a choice of villas half-hidden among the trees, or Malay-style stilt houses built right over the water.
Langkawi Islands
Promoted as "Malaysia's best-kept secret", these palm-fringed isles set in a turquoise sea have been developed into a world-class resort, and given duty-free status as a bonus. The airport has been upgraded, and ferries link Kuah with Kuala Perlis, Kuala Kedah, and Satun in Thailand. Fortunately, the hotel complexes remain discreet, and the islands' beauty is intact.
Made up of over 100 islands, the archipelago belongs to the state of Kedah, in peninsular Malaysia, though it is located off the west coast of Perlis, the northernmost state. The capital is called Kuah, which means "gravy". Here, there's a good reason for every place name, however strange it may be. When Langkawi's Princess Mahsuri rejected a suitor, his family confronted hers in a bloody battle when a number of pots and pans were smashed. Kuah was named after the gravy that was spilled, while the jug of hot water that fell to the ground at Telaga Air Hangat turned into a hot spring.
With a population of around 2,000, Kuah is expanding along the waterfront, with a number of good Chinese, Thai, Indian and Malay restaurants and a row of duty-free shops.
Apart from lazing on the beautiful beaches and trying all the watersports, you can play tennis and golf, trek through the jungle or hire a four-wheel drive, motorbike or bicycle to explore the island's 80 km (50 miles) of roads.
Two main beaches are in the southwest of the island, Pantai Tengah and Pantai Cenang. Further north is Pantai Kok, a large bay with a beautiful backdrop of jungle-clad limestone cliffs. Pantai Rhu (Casuarina Beach) is a lovely white sand cove rich in coral and marine life. At low tide you can walk across to a neighbouring islet.
It's a trek through hilly forest to reach Telaga Tujuh, seven pools created by a freshwater stream cascading from a height of 100 m (over 300 ft). Guided walks can be arranged for the forest reserves of Gunung Raya and Machinchang, where you'll be able to observe mouse deer, giant squirrels and long-tailed macaques.
The second-largest island of the group is Pulau Dayang Bunting, Island of the Pregnant Maiden. The intriguing name comes from a large, freshwater lake, reputedly inhabited by a big white crocodile. After the wife drank from the lake, a baby girl was born to a couple who had been childless for 19 years.
Pulau Singa Besar is a sanctuary for wildlife, with a network of trails to observe the birds, boar and mouse deer.
Kuantan
At the mouth of the Kuantan River, the capital of Pahang has developed greatly in recent years and has become a popular holiday resort. There are no particularly famous historical monuments, but there's so much to see in the way of fascinating traditions, colourful handicrafts, festivals and other activities that you will never have a dull moment. The Sultan of Pahang State resides in Pekan, further down the coast, in a palace fronted by polo fields.
In Kuantan itself, there is a batik factory where fabrics are hand-blocked with wax, dipped into steaming vats of dye and thrown into the river to set the colour. The nearby village of Selamat has a Brocade Weaving Centre; watch as weavers produce the famous kain songket, a fine brocade in dark, rich shades interwoven with complex patterns of gold and silver thread.
Just outside Kuantan is Teluk Cempedak, a fabulous stretch of beach near the Karyaneka Handicraft Centre, which specializes in jewellery, hand-painted pottery, batik and kain songet. A few kilometres to the north, Beserah is a fishing village with a craft centre displaying many articles carved, woven or made of shells. Top-spinning contests are held here, and kite-flying is another popular activity. The village is also famed for its salted fish and strong-tasting shrimp paste. The day's catch is transported from the fishing boats in carts pulled by buffaloes.
Wayang kulit puppet shows are held in Cherating village, further north along the coast. Here you can also see the traditional dance rodat, performed by a group of men as a plea to the gods to bless the fishing. At Sungai Karang there is a volcanic beach of black rocks, where trained monkeys climb the palms and pick the coconuts.
Inland, there are many sights of great beauty, notably the awesome Caras Caves at Pancing.
Redang Island
Further north up the coast, Redang is noted for its superb diving (clear waters down to 20 m/65 ft) over coral reefs chock-full of underwater life. The island is accessible by boat from Merang or Kuala Terengganu, and everything you could wish to do on a beach holiday is on offer at the resort hotels: water sports, tennis, golf, jungle walks. You can also amuse yourself watching the local fishermen shining bright lights on the waters to attract squid. Keep an eye out, too, for the green turtles that come to lay their eggs on Redang's pristine beaches.
Kota Kinabalu
The capital of the Malaysian state of Sabah (North Borneo) is a modern city of wide, tree-lined avenues and 150,000 people. Close at hand are dense forests, villages of stilt-houses, rice fields and white sand beaches-the best are on islands just offshore.
A major landmark in town is the 30-storey Sabah Foundation Tower, with 72 glass-clad sides and a restaurant on top. Another lookout point is Signal Hill, good for a sunset view of the city, harbour and islands. The markets make the waterfront district the most animated: the fish market is full of eye-catching varieties and the fruit-and-vegetable markets near the harbour are a riot of colour. Kampong Ayer Square becomes a night market with food stalls giving off appetizing aromas.
The impressive State Mosque, clad in Italian marble, has a minaret rising from the centre of a reflecting pool within its walls. Sabah Museum gives an insight into the history, anthropology and handicrafts of the island of Borneo.
South of the city along the coast is the resort area of Tanjung Aru Beach, with a golf course and yacht club. A shuttle service of boats takes swimmers, snorkellers, divers and picnickers to the lovely islands in the bay, protected as a nature reserve.
Villages of some of Borneo's indigenous tribes are easily reached from Kota Kinabalu ("KK" to most Malaysians). Mengabong along the coast is built on stilts over the sea, and inland Tamparuli has a swaying suspension footbridge leading to its exotic outdoor market.
A modern highway puts Kinabalu National Park within an hour's drive. On a short visit you can wander the forest paths and see the hundreds of species of orchids and the giant Rafflesia whose flower can reach a metre (over 3 ft) across, as well as some of the 300 species of birds. Those with the energy and time can undertake the climb-actually more of a steep mountain walk-to the summit of Mount Kinabalu, at 4,101 m (13,455 ft) the highest point in South-East Asia. (It entails an overnight stop in a mountain hut, and guides are compulsory.)
Kuching
The capital of the state of Sarawak is one of Malaysia's most attractive cities, with a colourful waterfront, many parks and gardens, Chinese temples and an unusual past. Like so many river-mouth ports on this coast, it was a pirates' lair in the early 19th century, until a British adventurer called James Brooke with a ship and a few men succeeded in suppressing them and quelling the endemic tribal wars. He appointed himself Rajah and with just two of his long-lived descendants ruled here until the Japanese occupation.
The Brookes built Fort Margherita to guard the Sarawak river. Now it's a police museum with a ferry boat shuttle from near the Tourist Information Office. The excellent Sarawak Museum on the main street of the city is over a century old.
A highlight of any visit to Sarawak is a voyage upriver in a longtail boat to a tribal village. On the Skrang River not far from Kuching, you can take a short trip, or stay overnight in a longhouse, enjoying the hospitality of the Iban people and being entertained by their dances.
