We arrived in Kuala Lumpur at 11pm. We had been told that Kuala Lumpur was very well signposted, however, we did not find this to be the case. We managed to get to the KLIA express train station which took 20 minutes to take us to the city centre. When we arrived there all of the local transport had finished so we had to get a taxi to Matahari hostel which we had pre booked. We had a lovely welcome from the receptionist.

The following morning we enjoyed our free breakfast of toast and jams in a very nice homely communal area. We went to explore the local area around the hostel which was Chinatown. It was a very hot day so we did not stay out long, but we went to the central market which sold a variety of things. We went into Chinatown which also had a large market and we had some noodles down a side street which were very nice. When the weather began to cool we returned to the central market and both had a fish therapy session. This is where you put your feet into a tank of fish that nibble on dead skin cells. We paid 5 ringgit (£1) for 10 minutes. It was very ticklish to begin with but you got used to it. In the evening we went to an Indian stall for food. We were told a price for rice and curry but did not realise that you got charged extra for additional items. When we came to pay we were surprised at the cost but it was still cheaper than a meal at home. It was certainly a lesson to us!

One of the suggested must see sights were the Batu Caves, so we got the train in the morning to visit them. The caves were out of Kuala Lumpur and took about 1 hour to get there. At the foot of the hill there was a large statue of Lord Murugan (Hindu God). We walked up lots of steep steps to get to the caves which held Hindu shrines. The steps were home to lots of monkeys that had a habit of steeling people's food. We only had a bottle of water but they tried to get that off Matt. The caves were nice but nothing spectacular. After the caves we had naan bread with sauces on a banana leaf which was very tasty! We got the train back to Kuala Lumpur and went to a park area but mainly walked a road, not seeing much. It was not very well sign posted. We went to an orchid garden which was nice.

Next day Matt and I got the monorail to Times Square shopping centre. It was a massive 10 storey building with hundreds of shops and an indoor theme park. We had a look around then walked to the main shopping and dining area. We went into numerous shopping centres, mainly for air conditioning as it was so hot. It was then onto the Petronas towers which are an iconic part of the city and feature in numerous films. The towers are the headquarters for the national oil company of Malaysia and a dazzling sight within the city. They held the top spot as the tallest buildings in the world for six years until 2004. Initially we could only see one tower and went into the Suria KLCC. This was another large shopping centre and had a Formula one exhibit on as the Grand Prix was that weekend. It had begun to rain heavily so we spent time looking around and treated ourselves to a Pizza Hut. After food we came out of the centre at a lovely fountain which had views of the towers. We found a nice spot to relax and waited until it got dark to take some pictures. It was definitely worth the wait as the towers at night were very pretty.

We got up early the next morning with the intention of going back to the Petronas towers to go up but when we went for breakfast, Sean the receptionist told us we had to go before 7am to get free tickets. We relaxed in the hostel chatting to other backpackers, then went for food at central market. We had dinner at the china town market where we had noodles and a roti ayam (chicken pancake) which was very nice. We spent the evening in the hostel chatting with other guests. It was nice to be back in hostels where it is easier to mingle.

Matt and I got a bus to Penang the following day which was a four and a half hour journey. Penang is an island that is attached to the mainland by a causeway and an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Once off the bus, a taxi driver informed us that we were not where we thought and a taxi would cost 25 Rupee (£5) but Matt took the lead and we got a bus for 4 Rupee (80p) for both of us. We had booked a hostel called the Old Penang Guesthouse, recommended to us by the receptionist in Kuala Lumpur. We arrived quite late so we went for food at a street stall and went to sleep in our 12 bed dorm.

We were given a map of Georgetown and the historical sites from the hostel owner. Penang is the only place in Malaysia that is solely governed by the Chinese although there is still an Islamic society here, whereas Kuala Lumpur has a more Islamic feel especially architecturally. From a list of 32 sites we saw 23. These consisted of Chinese and Muslim temples/mosques, the city hall, the town hall, the jetty, little India, churches and the esplanade. The buildings were all lovely. The city has a nice feel about it, more like a town. Outside a Chinese temple there were people promoting Hare Krishna and they gave us a free drink and rice meal which we ate with our hands. This was an experience!

I was feeling particularly home sick the following day so we went to the local shopping area which consisted of 4 different buildings which were all attached, it was very confusing! We found a cinema and decided to go. It was the first time since Australia. We went to see 'Source Code' and it cost £2.40 each, bargain! We had Nasi Goreng Ayam, which is an Indonesian dish that we actually miss.

The following day we spent some time planning our next trip into Thailand. We had heard mixed reviews about crossing the border overland but a flight was too expensive. It was the Thai New Year when we wanted to go so prices were more expensive. We booked the bus near the shopping area for the following day then got a local bus to the botanic gardens. The gardens were not very interesting, mainly trees. We attempted to get to a waterfall but after walking up what felt like millions of steps we were very tired and hot so turned back. As it happens another couple walked there and it was not the way to the waterfall so we were glad we did not keep going. When we got back to the town we went for some nice food across from the hostel.

We only spent 10 days overall in Malaysia but we had a nice time and got to see some lovely parts of the country. The people were nice and the food was good! What more can you ask for!

Emma xx