Let me take you on a journey through Malaysia’s paradise of food and on a flashback to the roots of the marvelous city of KL.
Tourism Malaysia and Malaysia Airlines invited Australian media on a famil trip to Kuala Lumpur. Mother Nature put on a good show for us while we were there so we could truly experience all of KL’s exciting activities and adventures.
Food Trail with Simply Enak
In Malaysia, nothing is as important as food [okay maybe family]. But you get the picture. They put an incredible amount of ingredients, spices and passion into their dishes.
That’s why one of the Must-Do’s in KL is the remarkable food trail.
The trail takes you on a tour of some of the most delicious dishes of South East Asia. And that’s the beauty of Malaysia. It’s not just made up of one type of food, it literally combines flavours and dishes from around Asia and even India to create really unique culinary experiences.
We started in a Chapati House in Brickfields, also called ‘Little India’. The very simple but tasty Chapati bread, served with spicy tofu and veggies, builds the basis of a typical Malayan meal.
Our guide – obviously obsessed with food [I am too, just FYI] – would know a story behind every meal that was served, so we could very quickly share his food-enthusiasm.
As we walked along Little India we stopped at several nearyby shops that sold all types of dried fish and even some durian fruits.
We were almost completely full by the time we arrived at Soong Kee – one of the oldest Chinese establishments in KL.
Here we dined on the essentials of Chinese food. The way the food is heated and the cooling element behind each dish could be very well experienced here. Oh and did I mention it was so spicy! YUM!
The food trail continued and we passed by a number of fancy snack places [where I could have eaten everything] but we decided to stop at the very multicultural, tasty and hip ‘Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock’.
The name of the restaurant is made up to Malaysian, Indian and Chinese words [the same nationalities as our guides] and it served pretty much anything you could possibly dream of [except sausage rolls and pies, but who needs that in Malaysia].
A big Thank You to ‘Simply Enak’ for this interesting and very filling tour – it was simply delicious!
Heritage Walk and MUD Theatre
By the time the food trail was finished we were so completely stuffed it was time to experience another side of Malaysia.
Standing on independence square with all historic buildings surrounding us it felt as though I were standing there 500 years ago watching the club members discuss the Plantas Club or the delegates walking through the halls of the parliament building.
In the National City Gallery one can feel the future meeting the past. The 40×50 feet miniature model of KL – the first one of its size in South-East Asia – lets you dive into a world of both history and modernism. It showcases the city’s past, present and future by a multimedia projection mapped on the model. This is the best way to get an overview of what is going to expect you on the heritage walk.
The tour itself was a big learning curve for everyone as it tells a lot about KL’s past and the way the many cultures living in the city changed it. Starting with the Malayan civil war caused by two Chinese gangs in the 19th century, continuing with the British reign that really left its stamp, KL declared independent and became Malaysia’s capital in the 70s.
If you’re thinking – a boring history lesson, then you’d be way off mark! The Mud Show Musical showcased a powerful and breathtaking introduction to Kuala Lumpur and how the city has risen from the mud. After all the struggle KL has been through – including fires, floods and civil wars – it seems surprising that the city now is brilliant like never before.
The stunningly dancing and singing Malaysian actors encouraged visitors to come on stage and participate in their dances, which I gladly did – of course.
So all I can recommend: make sure you’ll find KL on your bucket list and experience a busy, bustling and vibrant city with a great history and even greater food.