Butterfly Park in Kuala Lumpur

Black butterfly and blue/purple flowers

The Kuala Lumpur Butterfly Park is located in the Lake Gardens area which includes the KL Bird Park, National Mosque of Malaysia, Islamic Arts Museum, etc..

iridescent blue and orange butterfly

I like butterfly parks so I enjoyed it. It was an impressive butterfly park but it is also pretty much what you expect if you have visited several. If you enjoy them then I think it is well worth a visit. If you don’t know, it is a good one to check out and see if you like them.

White and orange butterfly on orange flowers

A big part of what I enjoy is the photography so if you enjoy photography you may well also enjoy a visit.

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Cheng Ho Cultural Museum, Malacca

Cheng Ho Cultural Museum is a small museum in Malacca dedicated to the memory of Cheng Ho (the more modern conversion to an English name calls him Zheng He). It is believed that the present Museum is situated on the original site of Guan Chang built by Cheng Ho, the Ming Grand eunuch, about 600 years ago. His fleet of several hundred ships sailed 7 times to the Western Ocean from China between 1405 and 1433.

Historic Timeline  of Melaka

Historic timeline of Malacca

Historical records reveal that Ming Dynasty’s Admiral Cheng Ho (Zheng He) visited Melaka at least five times during his famous seven voyages to the Western Ocean (Southeast Asia, Indian Ocean, Middle East and Africa).

Map of Cheng Ho's voyages

Map of Cheng Ho’s voyages

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Siew San Teng (Tau Pek Kong) Temple and Chinese History Museum, Kuching

photo of temple doors

The Siew San Teng (Tau Pek Kong) Temple in Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia has retained this spot since 1770. It is across the street from the Kuching river walk (and the small Chinese history museum). The temple itself has been renovated and rebuilt many times.

photo looking toward the river

View of the river from Siew San Teng Temple. The museum is visible on the left of the photo.

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Kuala Lumpur Aquarium

The Aquaria is located in the Kuala Lumpur City Center (KLCC), near the Petronas towers. It is pretty small and something that can be skipped without missing much. But if you have a bit of extra time it is a fine way to spend an hour or two.

photo of jellys in the KL Aquarium

These are real (which might not be obvious from the photo) jelly fish floating around in the display.

photo of very large fish at the KL aquarium

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Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur

photo of a beautiful chess set

Beautiful chess set at the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

I visited the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia while staying in Kuala Lumpor a few months back. It is a modern museum with clean lines and lots of open space.

The Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia houses more than 7,000 artefacts, as well has an exceptional library of Islamic-art books. The art objects on display range from the tiniest pieces of jewellery to one of the world’s largest scale models of the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca. The aim is to create a collection that is truly representative of the Islamic world. Instead of concentrating on works from the heartlands of Persia and the Middle East, IAMM also puts the emphasis on Asia. China and Southeast Asia are especially well represented. The third component of the Malaysian melting pot is India, which is also given special status.

View of gallery inside Islamic Arts Museum

The Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia has a open and attractive floorplan

I thoroughly enjoyed the visit, it did not seem as large as you might expect. If you are like me and enjoy visiting museums and learning I think it is worth a visit when you are in Kuala Lumpor.

You might also enjoy the bird park (which is nearby). The bird park isn’t really fantastic: in my opinion, it could be skipped without missing too much (but I like seeing animals and did enjoy it though it did seem a bit overpriced and under maintained).

Related: Tourist Stuff in Kuala LumpurDreams and Reality: Museum D’Orsay Exhibit at the National Museum of SingaporeHotels and Accomations for Travelers in Malaysia

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Tourist Stuff in Kuala Lumpur

Today I went to the Islamic Art Museum, Bird Park, Little India and the Aquarium in Kuala Lumpur. I am staying at a great hotel, with a very nice view (even free internet in your room). You can book for great rates using Agoda – I am becoming a big fan of Agoda as I use it on my travels. Here are some photos from the day (and one from last night).

photo of Petronas towers at night, Kuala Lumpur

Petronas Towers at night, Kuala Lumpur, from my hotel room.

photos of jellies at the Kuala Lumpur aquarium

Jellies at the Kuala Lumpur aquarium by John Hunter


Watch a cool webcast on jellies that I posted to my Curious Cat Science blog.
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