Illuminated, glowing and glittering against the night sky, the Petronas Towers of downtown Kuala Lumpur are quite simply a modern work of art. We have already had enough 'wow' moments to last a lifetime on this trip but in comparison even with the enigmatic Taj Mahal I have to say the Petronas towers is the most beautiful building I have ever seen.

Standing at 452m the 88 storeys of the Petronas Towers are the 3rd tallest building in the world. The 2 perfectly symmetrical towers connected by a distinctive bridge walkway at 170m, tower above downtown KL. Both towers made of 5 sections, signifying the 5 pillars of Islam. The sort of building that makes you feel a little dizzy when you stand directly beneath it and look up, the towers are quite simply stunning and a staggering feat of modern engineering. Impressive in daylight hours but definitely worth an additional visit after dark when the 'wow' factor rises to another level!

The front entrance and fountains are the first point of call for photos, followed by a walk through the KLCC shopping centre underneath for additional views from the park...and lots of them! The Traders hotel skybar, complete with a long narrow pool, is a great place to wile away a couple of hours with panoramic city views dominated by the towers.

Directly underneath the towers is KLCC shopping centre with it's mix of designer and high street shopping, food courts and bars. In addition to us tourists staring in awe at the towers the modern & clean park is busy with kids playing in the ample play area or paddling pools and stressed city types filling the running lane.

This was our 2nd trip to Malaysia having previously visited my cousin Mark who has lived and teached out here for 8 years. Mark, wife Gina and their 8 month old son Alex live in a swanky apartment complex with obligatory pool, gym and cafe just 15 mins from downtown, so once again a hearty welcome and some home comforts were gratefully received. Mark immediately showed us he had blended into the new culture by taking us to their favourite local Indian takeaway across the road. Whilst waiting for our food to be prepared he ordered 3 beers only to be informed as they were a Muslim restaurant they did not serve alcohol. Despite the halal menu, walls splattered with pictures of mosques and head scarf covered customers this was something Mark had clearly failed to notice in 8 years of visiting this establishment! (sorry Mark I know I said I wouldn't mention this....I just couldn't resist)

The city of Kuala Lumpur itself was founded by Chinese prospectors in search of tin, and literally translates as muddy confluent. A walk down to where the deep brown murky main rivers merge was the start of our tour of the old town with Mark playing the role of a very well informed tour guide...and so the lesson began!

The central area surrounding Medeka square was where the first British settlers built the impressive colonial Sultan Abdul Samad Building. The square also boasts the Royal Selangor Club and claims to have the highest flagpole in the world with the Malaysian red, white and blue fluttering in the gentle breeze, 100m above the square.

Nearby is a must do old colonial pub- the Coliseum, although appearing in desperate need of a makeover the appeal of drinking in a bar that could be in the black country museum gives it an immediate charm. Some of the serving staff could equally be in the same museum- Mark informed us the stooped man is over 100 years old!

KL is not a big city and the rolling green landscape is much less oppressive than many other concrete jungles across this part of the world. The Petronas skyline and Genting highlands in the distance give the city an immediate appeal. Evening entertainment is plentiful with no shortage of bars or restaurants. Another must do is street eating at one of the number of hawker stalls of Chinatown and Jalan Alor. Swordfish and a flat delicious tasting 'chicken fish' were highly enjoyable recommendations!

Mark is a keen golfer so being the accommodating person that I am, I was happy to join him for a Sunday morning game with a local ex pats club. The course we played was a little different to my usual 18 holes, surrounded by dense jungle and wildlife. The monkees rustling in the trees and swinging from limb to limb or running across the green and wild boor ravaged fairways, are my excuse anyway!

You pay for the privilege of hiring a local caddy but I can't help feel its a little pretentious as you use a buggy anyway. In essence all they do is mark and clean your ball on the green or hand you a club so are about as useful as a gas heater in a Viet Cong Tunnel.
They certainly didn't help my somewhat rusty game. With club fines named after various animals (camel for finding a bunker, rat a drain, fish any water hazard etc) for anything except basically finding a fairway and a lost ball out of bounds as the biggest wallet emptier, I have to admit to being a tad nervous on the first tee. It was no surprise then that I not only found the jungle on 1 but also on 2 and at this point the lure of the return trip to KL beckoned. Fortunately although no where near my A game, some control did return after that. After looking like we may have to skip South America I managed to escape with just a couple of additional menial fines and Sally was relieved to hear we can continue with our plans!

We will return to KL, although possibly not the golf course, in a couple of weeks time en route to Singapore. For now we are getting back on a plane and jetting 2 hrs to the Island of Borneo. Firstly a few days in Brunei to visit a friend from Uni, Keker and his family before we take on the jungles of Malaysian Borneo. The next big adventure of the trip awaits with the exciting prospect of seeing some Orang-utans in the wild...with the prospect of just a couple of snaps to come I had better go and clear the memory card...