(12-03-10) In the Celebes Sea, in East Malaysia, in the on the dividing line with Indonesia, there are three small islands that have become paradises for diving and relaxing: Sipadan, Kapalai and Mabul where the last destination of our trip in Malaysia.

   Malaysia is one of the nicer and easier to visit countries in Southeast Asia. Some decades of sustainable economic development and political stability have made this country be one of the flourishing and richest in the region. While it is true that political power (Malay) and economic influence (Chinese) have traditionally been separated along ethnic lines, Malaysia has defended a pluralist culture based on a vibrant fusion of Malay, Chinese, Indian and indigenous cultures and customs.

    Most visitors of Malaysia stay the in the peninsula, where the hustle of Kuala Lumpur is offset by the colonial quietness of Cameron Highlands Hill Station or the hedonistic torpor of Langkawi. Few visitors come to Sarawak or Sabah, on the island of East Malaysia, which have a spectacular wildlife, and a series of small islands: Sipadan, Kapalay and Kabul, considered mini paradises for divers, which are the last destination of our trip.

    But to travel to any place of Malaysia is almost essential to enter the country for its federal capital: Kuala Lumpur, where one must stay two days at least. On hundred thirty years, Kuala Lumpur has gone on, from being a rather uninteresting place, to become a modern, bustling city of over one million inhabitants.

    Although at first sight it could seem that KL (as the locals call it) is one among the new Asian metropolis of gleaming skyscrapers, it has survived its special character and the native colourful that has been so effectively erased in other booming cities in Asia like Singapore. KL retains many colonial buildings in downtown, a vibrant Chinatown with peddler and night markets, as well as an Indian district teeming with life.

    When in Kuala Lumpur a something is built, it is enormous. The twin skyscrapers Petronas Towers –the highest buildings in the World- dominate the skyline, and in Merdeka Sq a flagpole 95 m high stands. Despite the economical crisis, Kuala Lumpur maintains a large-scale development, such as with the works being undertaken to create a city of 8,000 million dollars in the south of the capital, an also an adjacent large high-tech multimedia corridor.

    Among the main and oldest buildings in KL there is the Sultan Abdul Samad, finished in 1897, which with its clock tower 41 meters high is one of the most typical of the city. One must visit the Parliament, the modern train station, the National Mosque, unique because of its geometrical structures and the minaret 73 m high that rises from the center of an artificial lake.

    It is spectacular, at night overall, the Masjid Jame Mosque, located in the place where the city began, between rivers Klang and Gombak, in a place full of palm trees between which its two minarets stand.

THE LAKE GARDENS, A BREATH OF FRESH AIR

    With magnificent views of KL, there is a place of rest and shelter when the temperatures climb: the Lake Gardens, which give life to one of the areas more popular and appreciated by the inhabitants of the city. There the National Monument stands, a bronze sculpture erected to honour national heroes, designed by the same artist who gave life to the Memorial in Washington.

    One also has to visit interesting places of the bustling capital, such as the Central Market, the National Museum or the Karyaneka Center. Also “Little India”, Jalad Masjid India, where the most Indian community lives. Immediately one enters its streets, it is like suddenly we were in a different country.

    What definitely has to be done in KL is to finish the day in Chinatown, bounded by the streets (Jalan) Petaling, Bandar and Sultan, a spectacle of light and colour. In its streets one can by anything, in the literal sense of the word, and, at night, Jalan Petaling becomes a pedestrian of a fabulous bazaar (Paser Malam).

    After visiting the capital and before jumping from the peninsula to the island, our final destination on those islands Malay mini paradises, we travel to the south to see the historic Malacca, the mountainous centre of the peninsula, to enjoy the wild nature of Cameron Highlands and, in the northwest, the cosmopolitan Georgetown in Penang Island, which we rediscover for a second time. A journey that we can see in the boxes.