Day 2: Batu Caves, Central Market & Bandar Mahkota Cheras

We began our day around 10am which wasn’t exactly early but all the vendors near our Airbnb wasn’t open yet. We decided to start driving towards Batu Caves first and then find a spot for breakfast along the way. After an unsuccessful attempt at finding food, we decided to get McDonalds – super authentic lol.

I didn’t want to get anything that I could’ve gotten back in the states so I tried the Nasi Lemak Burger and got an Iced Latte.

Nasi Lemak Burger from McDonalds

The chicken in the burger was crispy, tender and juicy. The Nasi Lemak sauce was a bit too fishy for my taste, but overall it was really good. The iced latte was meh, couldn’t really taste the espresso as the milk was really overwhelming. The fries weren’t as good as the McDonald fries back in the states. Later on the day, my aunt told me that KFC was way better so that’s next on my fast food list.

Batu Cave

Lord Murugan Statue by Batu Caves

My first impression was being amazed at how big the Lord Murugan Statue was. Looking straight at it from the bottom made the statue look as tall as the hills behind it. Unfortunately there was so much construction going on that it made the overall experience less majestic.

Before trekking up the stairs, there was a pile of bricks and buckets that you could voluntarily carry up to help the workers. Of course, I had to bring at least one brick up.

Trekking the stairs up to Batu Cave

From the bottom the stairs look overwhelming, but trekking up wasn’t too bad. It was way easier than I expected it would be. The main challenge was avoiding getting your stuff stolen from all the monkeys running around. Lucky for me I had a small bag to hide my sunglasses and anything else that may look tempting to steal.

Monkeying around

These monkeys may look cute but quite mischievous. One of them threw a plastic bottle at these two girls and I ended up being in the middle of it.

My favorite picture I took at Batu Cave

We got to the top fairly quickly and you don’t notice how massive it really is until you’re inside the cave.

Inside Batu Cave

It’s crazy how they carry supplies on their head up

There was so much construction being done that it made the whole experience feel less magical than it should’ve been.

I wanted to explore the dark caves but no one wanted to do the excursion with me. I would’ve done it alone but I would’ve felt bad making everyone wait 45 minutes for me. Definitely on my list next time I’m back.

After trekking back down, we got some refreshing coconuts to reward ourselves. Next stop, Central Market!

Central Market

If you thought LA traffic is bad, you haven’t experienced traffic in Southeast Asia. I would never want to drive here, it seems like there’s no rules besides the traffic lights. Everyone is too busy getting to point A to point B and no one is really sharing the road.

Central Market

I love visiting markets in other countries. There’s so many things to browse, from clothes to trinkets to a whole lot of souvenirs. Don’t even get me started on all the food you can get! I ended up getting a whole bunch of postcards and we tried a bunch of snacks.

Love the tiles and color

Central Market outdoor vendors

All these coconuts

Chinatown

A couple of blocks away was Chinatown, so it was natural that it was next on our itinerary. To my surprise, either it was too early or it was because of the weekday it wasn’t too crowded when we walked throu

Chinatown

Chinatown market

The best Chinese styled BBQ jerky I ever had.

We did some light browsing and stopped by this place called Lost in Chinatown. It was a store with a tacky gallery with pictures of celebrities and movie characters. The best part of it was a section with Malaysian history, slang and authentic dishes. Since it was free admission, it’s definitely worth checking out just for that part of the gallery.

After Chinatown, we explored the area surrounding us before heading back to the car. I love seeing all the vibrant colors, architecture and food everywhere we go.

I wanted to buy all of them!!

Burger ayam!

Amazing street art

After stumbling upon a burger ayam (ayam=chicken) stand, we went back to Central Market to use the bathrooms before we head back to the car.

Right as we were going to leave, it started pouring so hard, we had no chance but to wait until the storm passed. After killing a hour, it was clear that it wasn’t going to stop raining. We waited until it was raining lightly before making the move to buy some umbrellas and make the trek. Rain, humidity and sweat is not a fun mix.

We were going to head to Merdeka Square and the River of Life, but we had to save that for next time because of the rain. It was also pretty late since we waited for the rain to pass and we had dinner plans with my grandpa and some relatives from my mom’s side of the family.

Bandar Mahkota Cheras

Next stop was Bandar Mahkota Cheras which was southeast of Kuala Lumpur. It was roughly 30 to 45 minutes away and it was where my relatives live. Outside their house they had two cute guard dogs and one house poodle that was really excited when they saw us. I haven’t seen my grandpa in years and it was my first time meeting everyone.

We ate at a place called Legend Seafood Restaurant and got a bunch of different dishes. The only picture I took was a tofu dish since I didn’t bring my camera out to dinner.

A really good tofu dish

After dinner we went durian shopping at a spot that my grandpa likes. Durian is pretty big in Malaysia and it’s considered a luxury. Most people can’t stand the smell of the fruit and it’s banned in a lot of places. My grandpa ended up selecting a musang durian and another popular one.

Durian for sale

Afterwards they ate it back at my grandpa’s house along with some satay. We had one more stop before heading back to the Airbnb and it was seeing the Petronas Twin Towers at night.

KLCC

Suria KLCC and the Petronas Twin Towers was breathtaking at night. There was a water show by the Suria shopping mall and the Petronas Twin Towers were so tall that you had to look so far up and you can feel it in your neck.

Suria KLCC with the Petronas Twin Towers behind it

Petronas Twin Towers

There’s so much more in Kuala Lumpur to see, but we’ll save it when we’re back. Tomorrow we’re heading to Penang!