Batu Caves and Infinity Pool

Today we took a short trip outside of Kuala Lumpur, by train. The Batu Caves are a fun destination for most, but they also hold religious importance for the many Hindus who visit the holy sites held within them.

The entrance to the main cave

We had a most marvelous day. We reached the caves just about at lunchtime, and we quickly found a restaurant just on the outside, called Wow Banana Leaf, which was an experience onto itself. Our meals were simply scrumptious, and were served, appropriately, on banana leaves, and required to be eaten without utensils. Each dish is prepared and served in a hollowed bamboo container which the waiter empties on your leaf. I posted a separate short video on fb, if you are interested.

An unexpected real treat for me, as a huge Maneskin fan, was meeting this Japanese girl who was showing off her bag she bought at one of their Tokyo concerts. Maneskin is her favorite band as well.

The huge caves are made of limestone. Inside, you will find the biggest Hindu complex outside of India, and devotees come from all over the world. To enter the largest cave, you have to climb a gigantic stairway, painted with all the colors of the rainbow.

The steps are filled with monkeys. They are everywhere, and they are a show to behold. They rely on visitors to feed them, but you can find them stealing from unsuspecting visitors' open bags. It's a hilarious sight when tourists are caught unaware. We saw one pulling things out of a lady's bag; when she finally felt the pull of the monkey's hand she let out a scream that had us all laugh from the belly.

There is a huge statue (140 feet) of the Hindu deity Murugan; it is the second biggest statue of a Hindu deity in the world, and the largest statue in Malaysia of any kind. It makes quite a show of itself.

Inside the massive Temple Cave, are a number of shrines, with their pujari (priests), blessing the visitors.

Nearby Ramayana Cave is a good place to learn about Hinduism, with hundreds of statues depicting the the story of Ramayama, another Hindu deity.

Between visiting the two caves we took in a simple but pleasant dance show performed on an outside stage.

Heading back, we stopped briefly in a local mall. There are dozens of classy malls in Kuala Lumpur. while ours at home are all but closing, here they seem to thrive, and they are impressive both for their size, but also for the variety of stores within them.

The heat not relenting, we ordered sushi to take back to the hotel for dinner, then headed straight to the infinity pool for a refreshing dip overlooking the expanse of the city.

Just taking it all in.

Life is good. Make the most of it while you still can. Ciao.