Back to KL & Mallacca

Friday we walked around the highlands again, we walked 5km downhill to a tea plantation where we drank some nice tea and had a snack. After realizing that our trek back would be straight uphill, we inquired about any local buses. We were told that one would be by at 1:15, but by 1:30 we were getting skeptical. Suddenly this man in his car stopped alongside us and asked if we wanted a lift. The steep climb was so much better in his car!! What a friendly guy, too!

Saturday we left the Highlands at 8am and arrived in KL about 12:30 (with the sun beating down on us). We made our way to our old hostel where we checked in and headed to find some AC (our hostel didn't have any). The best place we've found to go to beat the heat are the giant malls that are around town. We kept cool inside while browsing around the shops. 

Sunday morning we got up around 6am so as not to be late for the Hindu festival, Thai Pusam. Our roommate from Shanghai also joined us. We took a local bus outside of the city about 30 minutes and then we walked to this cave that houses a ?Hindu temple. Some of the more fervant believers want to show respect for a god's birthday, so they climb up 300 steps and rest in the temple. They don't just walk, though, they 1)carry small pots 2) carry big float-type things, or 3) pierce needles through their body.  It was so crowded that we waited over 45 minutes just to start climbing the stairs! Some of the people were a bit scary....

(So many people!)

(This man carried this tower up the flight of stairs).

(His friend was pulling on his hooks the whole way up the stairs).

After we finished our climb to the temple, we came back down and ran into our new Dutch friends (the ones from the ferry and the day trip). We had told them about the festival and they wanted to check it out. We were so tired that we went back to our hostel and had a nap. When we woke, we grabbed dinner and then headed to the Petronas Towers again, to see them from another angle. Who did we run into??? Our Dutch friends! We laughed about them following us and then went to an outdoor cafe for some drinks. It was a good day!

(The towers in the background).

Monday we took the 2 hour bus ride to Mallacca, an old town that has been given UNESCO World Heritage status. We ate lunch down by the river at a cheap cafe, and then began our city walking tour. There's so much to see in this old town that we had a hard time trying to take it all in!  

(Mallaca Town Square).

(Lanterns in China Town).

We had heard that there would be a festival in the evening celebrating the last day of the Chinese New Year, so after dinner we headed

 back to China Town and we lucky enough to find the Lion Dance just starting! There were dozens of the costume dragons, so it made for a great show!!

(Dozens of dancing lions!)