Go Outing In Kuala Lumpur

Hello again

Kuala Lumpur. . . ibu negeri . . .  say it as in the old song, Kuala Lumpur.

KL is so very familiar to most of us. Little wonder because it is the heart of the country. It is the earlier hub of rapid growth. Hence young people flock there to find jobs after leaving school, me included.

I am more familiar with KL of the 80s, never I forget the public transport we had at that time, the notorious minibus, and never I forget about how the bus conductor used to cram us to the back of the bus for wanting to take in more passengers. We were inside the bus packed like sardines.

Those are history because now we have the LRT, MRT, monorail, uber, grabs etc.

Unlike the old days, the road system is hundred times better now. There are many different routes to choose to reach a destination. Up to you to plan your journey. If you don't mind paying the tolls your travel is usually smooth.

Over the years there are great changes to the capital city. If you put me right in the centre of KL now I would feel like a country bumpkin, well perhaps I am one and sure I'll be groping to find my way. There are more roads, more traffic, more buildings, more people.

I'll be overwhelmed and the old lady would feel lost in the great big city. 

If ever I am in the city I would rely on others to drive me around but to tell you the truth I wouldn't know the exact locations except if there are some old landmarks which I can remember.

Of course, if I see this landmark then I know its Ampang . . . (The pictures below were taken on an April night last year. Waited some time for the moon )

Though I am very contented with my living in a small town I sometimes nevertheless feel I am missing out on the happenings in the city. So once in a while, it is good to go outing there. Just to update myself a little. 

Three weeks ago I went to KL and I requested to be driven via the famous SMART tunnel. I only hear about the tunnel but have never travelled through it yet.

By the way, if you don't already know, SMART stands for Stormwater Management And  Road Tunnel.

It was built by the government meant to alleviate the flooding in the city during exceptionally heavy rain.

I experienced flash flood a few times when I was working in KL in the 80s. I remember once the water had risen so fast and caused havoc to our working place.  Now conditions should improve though news of flash floods still pop up sometimes.

It was nice and cool to take the tunnel way because you can avoid the traffic jams. In no time you reach the other end. So depending on where you want to go taking the tunnel is fast and safe.

Below are some of the pictures of the tunnel  I managed to capture. I was told that the green-lighted area is where the emergency exits are. So never fear.

Green area . . .

Actually,  we were going to Jalan Conlay where the annual crafts exhibition was ongoing, the Hari Kraf Kebangsaan 2018

Tengkolok the Malay traditional head gear

Ethnic bead crafts

Some people still prefer to use this type of cookware

Lengthy explanations on how to do batik painting

 A lot of things to see to learn and of course to buy.

Bought . . .

Then time for makan. Daughter gave a treat to a lunch buffet at the nearby hotel.

Displayed on the wall in the lobby

Temptatious sweets

The scrumptious buffet spread, a mix of local and not so local cuisine was very inviting. The food was good so it was worth it to consider that was a cheat day diet wise.

After the heavy lunch, we headed for home. We had to move fast because we expected the traffic to be heavy as it was a Friday. Though we took the SMART tunnel again the rest of the way the traffic was as usual, heavy, well . . . it's Kuala Lumpur . . .


Cheers . . .