JP and I had no plans to visit the tower on our second and last day in KL (mostly since we didn't know that it existed, haha!) I usually read about a place before I visit it, but somehow the excitement of being in a new country for the first time and the fact that JP usually does the research about where we go and eat left allowed me to just go with the flow and walk wherever he took us. For that morning, we had planned to walk around the Golden Triangle which was where our hotel was and just see everything on foot. Our flight back to Manila was not until early in the morning so we were planning to make the most out of the entire day before taking the bus to the airport at around 10 PM.

After meeting a friend for lunch at the Suria KLCC and spending a few hours walking around the swanky mall, we decided to go out for some fresh air and see the Cultural Center, which was just a few blocks away. With brochures in hand we walked and made a few stops to check Google Maps to see if we were on the right track. We finally saw an elevated, tree-lined road with a few hotels on the each side. When we reached the bend we saw a waiting van and a man in uniform waving to us saying "Shuttle to the tower, free shuttle! We couldn't believe our luck. My feet were singing sweet hallelujah! I love this city! 

We didn't imagine that the tower and the cultural center would be high up and without the shuttle I would have worn my feet to the bone trying to get there. The ride was short, but the few minutes allowed me to rest my legs and just enjoy the scenery as we went higher and higher over the city.

Never failed to take photos of my yellow loafers!

I loved looking at the colors and details

the KL Tower

hanging bridge leading to the entrance to the tower

The view of the road to the top. A lot of people visit this place even during Mondays.

We took a short pony ride for 20 RM, and I regreted it, unfortunately. Couldn't wait until it was over. The poor pony had to be whipped because the driver seemed to be in a hurry to take us around the village. I'm glad it lasted about a minute.

Petronas. The towers look stately and majestic, all surrounded by high rises but rising taller than all of them. We just had lunch at Suria Mall beside the towers, and I couldn't believe that I was seeing them from another amazing perspective.

You can see everything from here. I had fun looking down and looking for the places where we walked.

Spotted our hotel!

The tower at night... we were waiting for the shuttle when I took this shot. Turned out that the shuttle stops at the entrance to the tower and not at the entrance at the Village, so we had to walk back and wait for our ride there.

The Cultural Village lies at the entrance to the KL Tower, which is one of the tallest structures in KL. This is actually a communications tower, but it is popular among tourists because of its viewing deck and the revolving restaurant. The Cultural Village is also worth visiting since you get to see replicas of traditional Malaysian homes. At the base of the tower, there are shops and places to eat, which made me thank my lucky stars even more  :D

Would have loved to stay in this place until it closed but we had a bus to catch. At around  8PM, we said goodbye and headed down. It was definitely a great way to spend our last hours in the city. Until we meet again, KL!

Our trip to KL last weekend was everything I imagined it to be-- full of walking, eating, holding hands, and marvelling at how good it is to immerse ourselves in a place so totally new, where every corner is a new discovery. KL was our first overseas trip together, and my first abroad (talk about nervous when it was my turn at immigration!) so this was definitely one of the best firsts that we've had so far. Photos of our trip to come soon. For now, one photo before I hit the sack :)

Since the hotel is literally smack in the center of the city, exploring is as simple as going out and walking into any direction. Kuala Lumpur is really great to explore on foot. The shopping center is just a few minutes away and on the way there there's a lot of eateries and street food that we just had to try. We stopped by Ain Arabia  or Arab street which  is packed full of Arabian restaurants and shops. To top it all off, it seemed like they were having a food fair that day. The street was shut off from motor traffic and hawker stalls were up on both sides, with people selling different kinds of food from kebabs to samosas and the popias. Of course, I had to try whatever I could. It was also fun, asking how much for one piece and paying by myself. There's something different about being in another country and holding a piece of currency in your hand that is totally unfamiliar. But the food was great! I tried their version of the taho, the samosas, and a few multicolored desserts. After having the ultimate Malay fare nasi lemak for breakfast, trying out a few of their delicious street food was a great way to carry on with the day. 

My latest visit to CDO was spontaneous, unexpected, and very short, so I wanted to get the most of my trip. Fortunately, JP was game enough to cater to my whimsies. I wanted to walk everywhere, see museums and visit all the places that were just a few rides away from the city (I'm saving river rafting for a longer trip!). On my second and last day I wanted to go to see a museum or two, but since it was a Monday and the schools looked pretty busy and crowded, we went nature tripping instead. 

JP took me to Malasag, but this time we veered off the road that leads to the Ecopark and headed straight up to Mapawa, where another nature and conservation park was located. The road up reminded me of Baguio and soon enough I began to see pine trees in the fog. I could also see the city from where we were. Since it was still early in the morning we didn't see too many motorists so the ride up was peaceful and quiet. A few meters away from the park the road got muddy and slippery so I had to get off the motorcycle and make my way on foot (my poor, poor shoes!)... believe me, walking in muddy clay is not anyone's idea of a fun time with nature, especially if you are wearing flats. We got to the gate, paid the fee and proceeded down. The road looked even scarier since it was downhill, so much so that after a few steps we decided to turn back and take our chances somewhere else instead. The guide at the gate seemed sorry to see us go without seeing the park, so he told us that we can head to the viewing deck where we can have an amazing view of the park and their reforestation project instead.

I'm glad the guide recommended that we spend a few minutes here because the view was absolutely gorgeous. Stone steps lead up a small hill and over that you will see another set of steps leading down to an observation deck, where you can get an unobstructed 360 degree view of the park. So OK, we were perhaps the most unadventurous nature-seekers that anyone would have seen on that day, but we saw what we came there for nonetheless. Of course, I would want to visit the park itself but perhaps when the roads are all fixed or when I'm wearing better shoes ;)