Malaysia’s capital city is an intriguing blend of the old and the new so much so that it is a fitting mascot for the Malaysian Tourist board’s tag line that urges tourists to visit by proclaiming that ‘Malaysia is truly Asia’. This tag line attempts to highlight the multi-cultural character of Malay society which is made up native Malays and Chinese and Indian populations, an attribute which is clearly visible in cosmopolitan Kuala Lumpur or ‘KL’ as the city is popularly referred to.
Kuala Lumpur is located on the confluence of two rivers( the Kelang and the Gombak) and this city whose name translates as ‘muddy estuary’ is a modern city whose skyline is dominated by several tall skyscrapers of which the most renowned are the twin buildings of the Petronas towers, once the tallest buildings in the world.
The city is also frequently used by tourists as a gateway to the rest of peninsular Malaysia and it can easily be accessed from various parts of the globe via its state of the art glass and steel airport, called KLIA( Kuala Lumpur International Airport) which is located in the suburb of Sepang that lies at a distance of approximately fifty kilometers from the center of city . This state of the art, modern airport which often makes the lists of the ‘best airports in the world’ is a major hub for Malaysia’s homegrown airlines like Malaysian Airways and the burgeoning low cost airline, Air Asia which currently serves destinations in Asia and Australia but als...Read Moreo provides a low cost long haul connection between Kuala Lumpur and London and has its sights on flying to the US.
If a trip to Kuala Lumpur is on your radar screen then your journey from the US is definitely going to be a long trans-continental trek which is bound to extend over twenty hours and if at all you want to arrive at this enchanting destination located half-way round the world in decent shape then its best that you look for a cheap business class seat to Kuala Lumpur for your journey. Traveling in business class to Kuala Lumpur will greatly enhance the quality of your journey as business class travel affords you many amenities like priority check-in, superior baggage allowance, airline lounge access and many onboard luxuries like fully flat beds for you to recline on as well as elevated levels of service and much good food and wine. Even Air Asia which is a low cost carrier realizes the relative benefits of cheap business class seats and in fact offers discount business class seats on its long haul routes which entitle a passenger to seats which convert into fully flat beds like those in business class on regular carriers.
Contrary to popular belief, cheap business class airfares to Kuala Lumpur can be had if you know how to track them down. A plethora of airlines provide business flights to Kuala Lumpur from various US cities and these airlines themselves offer business flights discounts which they market through their dedicated newsletters or social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. However if all this seems to cumbersome for you , then you can always elect to procure the very same cheap business class tickets to Kuala Lumpur from a reputable and established airfares consolidator. Airfares consolidators often have discount business class tickets to a wide array of destinations owing to the consolidator contracts that they have with individual airlines. Moreover these discounted business fares to Kuala Lumpur usually have all the perks of regular business class fares like mileage accrual and pre-assigned seats though they may require advance purchase but that seems to be a small price to pay to ensure that the many comforts that are associated with business class air travel to Kuala Lumpur are available to you for your long haul journey.
The location of Kuala Lumpur near the Equator bestows on it a weather pattern which can be described as hot and humid all year round. It is not unusual for daytime temperatures in Kuala Lumpur to touch 95° F or 35° C though the city also experiences thunder storms during the afternoons or early evenings which help cool things down somewhat.
This steamy KL weather necessitates that your luggage be composed of cool, cotton clothes that are known to ‘breathe’ in the sultry KL weather. As for adapters for the myriad electronic devices that you are bound to take with you, you will require adapters that have three pins with rectangular blades for most of the sockets in KL use these plugs and carry an electrical voltage of 240V.
The heart of KL city which is made of streets like Jalan Sultan Ismail, Jalan Imbi and Bukit Bintang is popularly referred to as the Golden Triangle for located here are many of KL’s upscale hotel properties and bustling luxurious shopping malls. In fact nearly all the word’s luxury hotel chains have a presence in KL and most of them are located here in the heart of the city. Aside from these hotel properties ,the area is also populated with malls like Lot 10, Starhill plaza, Sungei Wan, BB plaza and KL plaza which are forever filled with shoppers and tourists who buy all sorts of products that are sold here from designer goods and apparel to locally produced handicrafts, leather goods and shoes, batik and other ethnic apparel like elaborately embroidered and festooned kebayas which constitute traditional attire for Malay women and make great souvenirs and gifts for friends and family back home.
Kuala Lumpur’s landscape is an intriguing mix of the old and new worlds as the city is littered with several tall skyscrapers and condominium buildings which seem to easily co-exist with the city’s many old world colonial structures like the Royal Selangor Club and the many establishments which line the city’s Asian Heritage Row a favored nightlife and dining enclave in Kuala Lumpur that is located in the heart of the city.
As for sight-seeing options, nearly all of Kuala Lumpur’s sights like the world famous Petronas Towers, the Merdeka Square which is home to has the highest flag pole in the world, the Royal Selangor Club, the National Mosque,(Masjid Negara), the Lake Gardens which contain the National Monument, a Butterfly House, a Bird Park and the Orchid and Hibiscus gardens with their folds and the Menara Tower KL are conveniently located within the city center and are easily accessible on foot or via KL’s many modes of public transportation that include inexpensive taxis, buses ( including a convenient hop on and off bus which caters to tourists), the LRT( light rail transit) and commuter and express rail way trains which also provide convenient inexpensive links to the KLIA.
Your trip to Kuala Lumpur will not be considered complete if you do not sample the rich flavors of the city’s local cuisine which is available at the city’s many restaurants and street stalls which actually also serve popular western foods along with local fare . Malay cuisine is quite diverse and features a unique amalgamation of Indian and Chinese cuisine influences which are easily evident in dishes like Roti Canai , a popular breakfast food that consists of fried Malaysian bread which is eaten with a chicken curry sauce, Nasi lemak which is a rice based meal which features many accompaniments, Kaya Toast which features toast slathered with a sweet egg and coconut spread, popiah or fresh spring rolls, Murtabak which is a minced meat stuffed bread that is eaten with a curry and Teh Tarik which is typical Malaysian pulled tea that is hugely popular in KL and elsewhere in Malaysia.
Your sampling should also include the famous KL interpretation of the burger which is known the Ramly Burger. The Ramly Burger, is favorite late night eat of revelers who love to party the night away in the city’s many nightclubs and then venture out to grab a bite before heading home. The delicious Ramly burger features a beef patty or chicken patty, eggs, cabbage along with Worcestershire sauce and curry powder flavorings. All these various local delights can be had in the city’s many eating establishments but they can be sampled all in one place at a street known as Jalan Alor which lies within close proximity to the city’s Golden Triangle and is fittingly known as ‘Food Street’ for its many food stalls and hawker centers often remain open all night in order to feed their hungry Hide