KUALA LAMPUR, MALAYSIA

March 18, 2025

KUALA LAMPUR, MALAYSIA

According to the Viking Daily:

“KUALA LAMPUR, MALAYSIA

The lively capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur was built by Chinese tin prospectors in the mid-1800s. They had come here in search of a fortune, and found it by clearing wide swaths of jungle for a new mining town. Since then, the city of KL, as the locals call it, has grown into a stunning mix of colonial, Moorish, Tudor, neo-Gothic and Grecian-Spanish architecture. The two-story shop houses of Old Market Square, with storefronts below and residences above, reveal the lives of merchants. The magnificent Petronas Towers are the centerpiece of this fascinating city; the side-by-side twin spires resemble a pair of rockets, connected by a two-story sky bridge that spans the 41st and 42nd floors.”

Our excursion this morning was titled “A Glimpse of Kuala Lumpur” and was an included tour. I don’t think I have ever mentioned the significance of an included tour. An included tour is basically an excursion that Viking offers for free. Most are overviews of a location that we are visiting and most are quite good. We are also offered “optional” excursions which charge a fee. Usually these offer extra sites to visit with more in-depth information, smaller groups or more exotic experiences. We usually do the included tour unless one of the optional excursions sounds too good to pass up.

As already mentioned, this was an included tour and was an overview of Kuala Lumpur. The port was about an hour and a half drive to the city and we weren’t thrilled about being on a coach for three hours but decided that it was worth it to be able to see Malaysia. Actually, the views from the coach coming and going were very interesting. Our driver drove VERY FAST, and that made for an interesting ride as well!

Here’s our bus. I love the artwork on the outside!

Once in the city we drove to the main sites and were given a few moments to take photos at each one.

Our first stop was at the iconic Petronas Twin Towers. It is the tallest twin towers in the world and was the tallest skyscraper in Malaysia until 1921 when it was surpassed by Merdeka 118.

We also saw the Merdeka 118, a 118-story skyscraper which is the tallest building in Malaysia and the second tallest structure in the world! Of course that includes the tower. We were impressed with the architecture of all the buildings in Kuala Lumpur. All are so stunning and diverse!

Next we visited The National Monument which is a war memorial that commemorates those who died in Malaysia’s struggle for freedom, principally against the Japanese occupation during World WR II and the Malayan Emergency which lasted from 1948 until 1960. It is the world’s tallest bronze freestanding sculpture grouping.

We visited the National Mosque of Malaysia, commonly known as Masjid Negara. It is one of the largest Sunni-affiliated mosques in Malaysia. It is perfectly reminiscent of the Grand Mosque in Mecca and able to accommodate 15,000 worshippers. It was built in the 1960s. Rising above the mosque is a 74m-high minaret that issues the call to prayer, which can be heard across Chinatown. It happened to be Ramadan when we visited and there was a prayer service going on, so we were not able to go into the mosque, but we certainly enjoyed viewing it from outside.

Last Stop before the long drive back to the ship - Kuala Lumpur Museum.

Remember when I mentioned that I didn’t like museums all that much? Well, after visiting this museum I may have changed my mind! I really enjoyed seeing all the artifacts, unusual and beautiful things in this museum. It was very well done! As usual, I went through it quickly and didn’t read much about the displays. My focus was on the “beautiful” things I discovered. I tried to capture that beauty in the photos I took.