The Petronas Towers Standing Tall

The Petronas Towers are the true icon of modern-day Malaysia, standing tall against the skyline, visible from almost every part of the city. When built in 1998, the twin towers stood as the highest building in the world, a pretty significant achievement for the small country of Malaysia, boosting national pride and helping them feel like they are recognized on an international level. The name comes from the government owned petroleum company, Petroleum Nasional...hence Petronas. Each of the adjacent towers are 88 stories high, connected by a sky bridge on the 41st floor. Since being built, a few newer buildings have claimed the title of the world's tallest building, though they still hold on to the claim of the world's tallest PAIR of buildings, standing at something like 1,490 feet tall. They were designed by an Argentinian architect, emphasizing Muslim influences in the construction of the building, consisting of five tiers representing the five pillars of Islam, using star shapes as the pattern, again from Islam and each building have a base of 18 points - thirteen for the number of states in the country plus the five pillars of Islam. Despite seeing them on tv and movies (they play a key role in the movie Entrapment), it was amazing to see them in person, shooting up out of the ground and dominating the skyline. At the base is a massive six story shopping mall surrounded by a large park, all encapsulated within the KLCC moniker, Kuala Lumpur City Centre. My first forray into the mall was actually disappointing for the sole reason that I opted for the fourth floor food court and was not too happy with my meal. It's not that the meal was all that bad, but I opted for some touristy Chinese food, and I had come to expect so much from the wonderful Malaysian cuisine throughout the city that I really second guessed my choice of food for the next few hours, knowing the potential of other meals in the vicinity. My second time there, I went to a Thai restaurant where I had the real version of Penang curry, a yellow mix of coconut milk, chili paste and curry powder, along with a few vegetables and chicken. This is one of my favorite meals back home, so I was anxious to try the real thing, and it didn't disappoint.

For my second day in KL, I awoke early and got up to the basement of KLCC, where I lined up with a bunch of other eager tourists, getting in line for the free passes up to the Sky Bridge. Though it's free, they limit the amount of people to something like 1,600 per day, so you have to arrive early, get a pass and then come back at your scheduled time, so I chose a ticket for later in the day, as the perpetual haze in the sky starts to clear off by that time. I'm told that KL is often like this, as the heat and humidity create some haze, but the larger part is attributable to the burning of rainforests and garbage in Indonesia, with the smoke and pollution being carried North by the prevailing winds. As for the Sky Bridge, at 3:45, about 20 of us watched a short 3D video (3D was not that good) about the towers, and then we took the express elevator up to the 41st floor, the highest level you are able to reach as a visitor. Walking into the wide hallway, the windows all around give panoramic views of the entire city spread around you. It was great to get the aerial view, but within about 15 minutes, we were all ushered out, back down the elevator to make room for the next group. I then spent the evening relaxing in the park below, enjoying the view of the buildings and watching the sky change from hazy grey to a bit of pink to a deep blue as night set in.

(The massive Petronas Towers, nicely symmetrical.)

(Here you can see a few of the tiers, relating to the pillars of Islam and the numerous points, relating to the pillars of Islam plus the number of states in Malaysia. It sounds like they actually planned this out before they built it - always a good idea.)

(Cool picture, but this really took so, so long for someone to get it right. It's amazing how many people took pictures where you could hardly even see the towers.)

(From the Sky Bridge, looking down on the city park below. Notice the imposing shadow produced by the towers.)

(If you zoom in, you can tell exactly what time this sunset happened, as there is a massive digital clock on the building on the right.)

(Just a little while later. The sky changed, but I stayed in the same place.)

(At night, the bright lights can be seen from all over the city.)

(As I'm typing this, I'm singing the Standing Tall song in my head, the theme song from the old sitcom Perfect Strangers, I think. Either way, catchy, terrible old song.)

(I have nothing left to say at this point, though my head keeps telling me to write Standing Talllll... Unfortunately I don't know any more of the lyrics to that song, so that's just repeating over and over in my head.)

(A great way to finish off the day, with a bowl of penang curry in the KLCC. This coconut chili mix is one of the best meals ever invented.)