Kuala Lumpur has something for everyone, finds out Yana Bey

AS one of Southeast Asia’s glitzy capitals, Kuala Lumpur has much of the cosmopolitan glamour of Hong Kong, towering high-rises (you will never forget the first time you view the giant gleaming cylinders of the 452-metre Petronas Towers from their base), rocking nightlife, a vibrant fashion scene and international cultural shows and concerts but with endearing characteristics that are a contrast to the lurking brittleness of the Chinese city. People are solicitous; everyone (most importantly, taxi-drivers) can use a smattering of English; prices don’t oscillate according to whether you are a local or tourist; and amid the soaring hotels and shopping plazas nestle charming buildings dating from Kuala Lumpur’s colonial past.

Apart from the gardens, museums, mosques, heritage buildings et al, was one delightfully preserved piece of history — the old British-built jail, now used as a rehabilitation centre, of which I got a bird’s-eye view from my room in the Berjaya Times Square Hotel and Convention Centre, one of the city’s newest hotels.

Sightseeing in Kuala Lumpur is a moving experience of modernity spliced with history – such as when we took the monorail from what is known as the KLCC (Kuala Lumpur City Centre), the shopping and dining hub, to the Masjid Jamek (Friday Mosque). Zooming past vistas of skyscrapers glittering in the sunlight, we disembarked at a station next to the confluence of the Klang and Gombak rivers — the spot where the city’s founding fathers landed — and were entranced as the mosque’s graceful domes, arches and minarets appeared before us.

Designed by an English architect, A.B. Hubbock, the city’s oldest mosque was built in 1909. Its serene precincts are a world removed from the monorail track, rectangular buildings and stream of swanky cars and buses that besiege it. Scarves are available at the entrance for women visitors to cover their heads and we were amused to see a male American tourist in shorts having to envelope himself in a baju kurung, the long tunic and skirt that is worn by Malaysian women.

Many people go to Kuala Lumpur simply for its shopping circuit — that extends from the high-end malls in the Bukit Binthang, KLCC, Ampang and Tun Razak areas, to budget buying in the Tuanku Abdul Rahman and Little India streets, along with handicrafts at Central Market and bargain purchases at the famed Chinatown night market. This night market, there are others in the city, is most known for fake Gucci watches costing 10 ringgits but it’s also a good place for souvenirs.

Good buys can be Kuala Lumpur tee-shirts, Petronas Towers replicas that turn out to be bottle-openers, biker T-shirts and lighters, music videos, jewellery, clothes, shoes, bags, and delicious snacks like dried squid, prawn crackers and shrimp paste. Bargaining is more evolved here than even in the oldest Chandni Chowk bazaars of India. As I named my price, a Chinese youth clutched his chest and feigned a heart attack. At another stall, a matron cast an incredulous look at me and then yielded grandly.

But perhaps my best discovery about Kuala Lumpur was its culture scene. A show by a troupe of international artistes goes on stage every night in Genting Highlands Resort, 51 km from the capital. Amid the cabaret, jazz dance and modern ballet was a superb abstract modern classical dance item that I later saw again on a TV show recorded in Las Vegas. These performances, which used to come to India in the 1970s but rarely do now.

Also of interest to musically-inclined Indian visitors are concerts by the National Symphony Orchestra and the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, since the orchestras in Calcutta and Delhi have virtually died out.

The Genting resort complex, which has six inter-linked hotels, two amusement parks and a gigantic auditorium that frequently hosts Bollywood shows, is always choc-a-bloc with Indians. They love its indoor and outdoor theme parks filled with video games, carousels, roller coasters and replicas of world landmarks like New York’s Times Square and Paris’ Champs Elysees. Tucked amidst it all are two priceless features: Sky Venture, a skydiving simulator consisting of a wind tunnel in which you learn to belly fly for several long minutes; and a wonderful Ripley’s Believe It or Not exhibit called The Car of the Ungrateful Dead, made of guitars and other memorabilia belonging to pop stars. Genting also has a climbing wall, a bowling alley and the world’s largest Q-Bowling centre.

Skimming the rainforest, we spotted a black goat which was promptly certified "wildlife" by an astonished Kim Teoh, a resort staffer who showed us around. She insisted it couldn’t belong to anyone in the sanitized, commercial hub that Genting is. We conceded her point.

Genting also has Malaysia’s only two casinos though no alcohol is served. Pubs and discos dot the entire complex along with the ubiquitous shops and restaurants.

Most Malaysian restaurants are a non-vegetarian gourmet’s (as well as gourmand’s) delight but our best meal was an a la carte menu painstakingly selected for us by Kim at Genting’s Lake View restaurant.

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