Ramble and Wander

Lunch at Merchant’s Lane (About 500m from the hotel) Merchant’s Lane is probably one of the first “hipster” cafés to be set up in Chinatown, which is located just across the street from the hotel. How to get there: Kota Raya Complex is located in the city centre, right across the road from Petaling Street and Pudu Sentral. Two other LRT/MRT stations nearby are Pasar Seni station (550m) and Masjid Jamek Station (600m). Central Market (300m), River of Life/ Masjid Jamek (400m), National Textile Museum (550m), Dataran Merdeka and Sultan Abdul Samad Building (600m).

Google Map Kanching Eco Forest Park is a must-visit eco-tourism destination in Rawang. Google Map Head over to Kuala Kubu Bharu if you want to have fun in the water. Taman Alam Kuala Selangor (Kuala Selangor Nature Park) is a park that is surrounded by beautiful mangrove swamps. You can explore the towns of Jugra and Batu Pahat and see the beautiful natural scenery from the sky by paragliding activity at Bukit Jugra, Kuala Langat or Bukit Batu Pahat in Hulu Selangor.

Labuan, Malaysia’s Federal Territory in the Borneo part of the country, is not exactly a “stranger” to me. At one point in my life, a CEO of an offshore financial company had asked me if I’d like to go work in Labuan. Cheap cars and chocolates,” was the common answer at the time, which was not enough for me to consider visiting, let alone to move there. I came away wishing that I hadn’t brushed off the offer so quickly!

In some ways, one can say that Malaysian cuisine is somewhat like New York; some of the dishes didn't originate from here, but they have found a loving and forever home in Malaysia. Each serving of Nasi Lemak primarily consists of rice steamed in coconut milk, peanuts, fried anchovies, a quarter or half of a boiled egg, some cucumber slices, and a spoonful or two of sweet and spicy sambal. In addition, prawn sambal, chicken rendang or beef rendang may also be added to the list to complement and enhance the already rich flavours. The rice is served with a wide array of sides that include dried fish, salted egg, budu (pickled anchovies sauce), solok lada (fish meat-stuffed pepper), prawn crackers, ayam percik (marinated chicken) and a selection of aromatic herbs.