Following my trip to Nepal and Tibet I needed a few days to recuperate as my trip thus far was anything but relaxing. This meant checking into a posh hotel with Rashidah in the heart of Kuala Lumpur for the final few days of my break.
Petronas Towers
The world famous Petronas Towers (452 m or 1,483 ft) were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 and remain the tallest twin towers in the world. The building contains 88 floors and cost $1.6 billion to build. Interestingly, the towers were constructed using super high-strength reinforced concrete rather than steel, since steel costs too much to import in Malaysia. The concrete is "twice as effective as steel in sway reduction;" however, it makes the building twice as heavy on the foundation compared to a steel building of the same size (Wikipedia).
Now for a few hometown Chicago shout outs... The Sears Tower (Chicago, IL), I will forever refer to it as the Sears Tower, was the previous tallest building in the world. The Petronas Towers surpassed the Sears Tower by 10 m (33 ft) in 1998. However, it is important to note that the Petronas Towers include its spire in its official height, whereas the Sears Tower's official height does not include its antennas. If the antennas were included, the Sears Tower would have remained the tallest building in the world until 2010 when the megastructure Burj Khalifa was completed in Dubai.Entering the massive and luxurious Suria KLCC mall, which constitutes the base of the Petronas Towers, I was taken aback by my serendipitous discovery. A freaking GARRETTS POPCORN SHOP!!!! I was on the verge of tears, I was so unbelievably overjoyed to run into an iconic Chicago establishment. It seriously made my trip. For those of you who don't know, Garretts makes the best popcorn in the world. It is standard policy to get "The Mix", which is a 50/50 blend of caramel corn and cheese corn. Before I tried Garretts as a kid, I never thought popcorn could be that delicious.
Petronas Towers & Suria KLCC Mall
Fountain in Front of Petronas Towers in KLCC Park
Petronas Towers
Honestly, the vast majority of my time in Kuala Lumpur was spent in the hotel room ordering room service or exploring anything within walking distance of my hotel. It was exactly what I needed to round out my break. I enjoyed KL tremendously, I would easily live there. The food was outstanding, the people friendly, the city is more modern and orderly than Jakarta, and English is widely spoken. Great place to visit!
The night before leaving, Rashidah and I tried our luck at solving a puzzle room at a place called Breakout (Avenue K Mall). You select a room of varying difficulty and attempt to solve a puzzle in an hour. Rashidah and I attempted the Chamber of Hocus puzzle room. We had a blast, I've never felt so compelled to say, "well gang, it looks like we have another mystery on our hands." If only Shaggy and Scooby had been with us I'm sure we would have solved the puzzle, unfortunately we ran out of time. I would absolutely recommend trying a puzzle room in the future if you have the opportunity; doing it a second time would be much easier since you would have a better idea of what to look for. Thanks for reading!
Breakout Puzzle Room
Rashidah Behind Bars
Puzzle Rooms
Puzzle Rooms
Behind Bars
Trapped with Rashidah
Rashidah & I
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