Day 3: Batu Caves + Putrajaya

Backpacking South East Asia by the Hand Signs
Day 1: Petronas Twin Towers
Day 2: Genting Highlands

Since we missed going to Batu Caves in Day 2, my companions and I agreed to visit the popular cave on the 3rd day. From Bukit Bintang, we took the monorail back to KL sentral. And from KL Sentral, we took the Putra line to the last station which is Gombak. From there, we decided to take a cab. Fare is RM12.

The cave is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India, dedicated to Lord Murugan.

entrance to Batu Caves

Rising almost 100 m above the ground, Batu Caves temple complex consists of three main caves and a few smaller ones. The biggest, referred to as Cathedral Cave or Temple Cave, has a 100 m-high ceiling, and features ornate Hindu shrines. To reach it, visitors have to climb a steep flight of 272 steps.

the unobstructed view

Standing at 140.09 ft high, the world's tallest statue of Murugan, a Hindu deity, is located outside Batu Caves. The statue, which cost approximately Rupees 24 million, is made of 1550 cubic metres of concrete, 250 tonnes of steel bars and 300 litres of gold paint.

world tallest statue of Murugan, a Hindu god

272 steps up the limestone hill

I didn't go up simply because I brought my luggage with me. My flight to Saigon, Vietnam was scheduled at 5:40pm.

me and my red luggage

On the way to the Ramayana Cave, there is a 50-foot tall murti of Hanuman and a temple dedicated to Hanuman, the noble monkey devotee.

statue of Hanuman

the pond overlooking the huge statue of Murugan

Lee and the other bloggers are right. Don't skip this spot when you visit Kuala Lumpur. It may be out of way for our next destination but we're glad we visited this interesting site and saw Malaysia's side of being Hindu. The good thing about visiting Malaysia, is that you can find cheap hotels in Kuala Lumpur and use the money you save to explore the city.

info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batu_Caves

Our next destination: Putrajaya and Cyberjaya.
To go there, we went back to KL Sentral via Putra line. We transferred to KLIA express, paid around RM5, and unboard in Putrajaya station. Once in Putrajaya, we went to the ticket booth and paid RM39 for the taxi that will tour us around the place for 1 hour. The taxi driver spoke good English. He served as our tourguide too.

Putrajaya

Putrajaya has become the new capital city near Kuala Lumpur. It was formerly known as Perang Besar and is located 25 km south of Kuala Lumpur. It is the new Administrative Center of the Government and will be a test bed for an electronic Government (a paperless administration) and will be equipped with the latest telecommunication technologies. It is set to be a model garden city with sophisticated information network base on multimedia technologies.

PICC
Putrajaya International Convention Center. This is a beautiful building for international conventions.

Day 3 at Putrajaya

Seri Wawasan Bridge
This futuristic cable-stayed bridge which has a sail ship appearance surely looks more fabulous at night. But the taxi driver said it is only lighten when there's an event or festival.

Seri Wawasan Bridge

Putra Mosque or Masjid Putra
The principal mosque of Putrajaya. Im not sure if I can go inside the mosque. Besides I find it disrespectful to stroll around the area while some are solemnly offering their prayers.

Putra Mosque

Perdana Putra
It houses the office complex of the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Perdana Putra

source: http://www.malaysiasite.nl/putrajayaeng.htm

OK, our 1 hour is really not enough to visit every spot in Putrajaya and Cyberjaya. But I need to leave, that's almost 3pm and I needed to rush to LCCT to catch my flight. The taxi driver offered to drive me for RM30 but I refused. Since Im going alone (my companions will stay for another night in KL) and I cant afford the taxi fare all by myself (or kuripot lang ako). Instead I took KLIA express train.
Wrong move!
I waited for 20mins more for the next train to arrive. That was almost 3:50pm then. I was praying and praying. I need to arrive at LCCT on time. Luckily I did. But when I arrived at LCCT, the scene was unbelievable. There are too many people trying to check in.

Act of Kindness #2:
a German lady offered me to take her slot in the check-in counter. She said her flight was still at 7:40PM and mine was at 5:40PM. She said she can afford to line up again. Im so thankful! Ü

Next step: the immigration officers. They put me on hold because they said I dont have any documents. They asked me how will I get to Thailand (my return ticket bound to Manila is from BKK) from Vietnam. I insisted I dont need to have a VISA or any document to go to Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. I will just travel by bus to reach my last destination before going back to Manila.

They didn't believe me of course. They said they need to verify first. OK, but please make it fast. It was almost 5pm and my flight was at 5:40pm. Im not nervous that the IO wont let me pass, Im sure I dont need any documents. Im just so nervous that if I miss my flight, all my other plans will be ruined..

After 20 mins, the IO smiled and said I can pass. Though Im so pissed off, I smiled back and asked if I can still make it in my 5:40PM flight. He answered "Your flight was delayed."

Whew! For the first time, Im so happy my flight didn't go on time. It was actually delayed for 2 hours.

my delayed Airasia flight

At that time, the next thing I got worried about was the service car that will pick me up from Ho Chi Minh City airport, Vietnam. I needed to advice them that my flight was delayed. I tried calling the number found on their website but it isn't working. So instead I looked for a wifi spot and emailed them..

and finally it's time to relax, eat, and just browse

Finally at 7:40pm, the plane flew towards HCMC, Vietnam. It was a 3 hour ride. I lined up at the immigration booth and have my passport stamped. I got my luggage and hurriedly went outside the airport. There I saw a man holding a paper with my name on it. Yey, he waited for me!

and it's officially the first country where I traveled solo

Click here for Day 4: Ho Chi Minh City trip