103 Tuesday, 3/27/2018 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Viking Sun

103  Tuesday, 3/27/2018  Kuala Lumpur (Boustead Cruise Center/ Port Klang), Malaysia 8:00-5:00 

If you ever plan a Viking Cruise, notice where the ship is docking and where the excursions will be.  This port was a 1.5  hour drive from Port Klang to Kuala Lumpur.  Getting very tired of riding buses for extended periods of time.  

Capital of Malaysia was built by Chinese tin prospectors in the mid-1800s.  They cleared wide swaths of jungle for a new mining town.  KL has grown into a mix of Colonial, Moorish, Tudor, neo-Gothic and Grecian-Spanish architecture.  The two-story shop-houses of Old Market Square, with storefronts below and residences above help reveal the lives of merchants.  

Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Mosque/Blue Mosque is located in Shah Alam Malaysia.  It is the country's largest mosque.  

Blue Mosque construction was finished in 1988.  At one time it had the largest religious dome in the world, I'm not sure if that is still true.  The design is a combination of Malay and Modernist style.    

Blue Mosque can hold 24,000 worshippers.  

Blue Mosque

KL’s Blue Mosque  & Other  Highlights  Tour KL full day.  8 hours.  Lunch included.  The morning was rainy as you will see in my pictures.  One hour to get to the Blue Mosque, stopped for 15 minutes for photos of the outside.  Mosque can hold 24,000 worshippers and the dome measures over 350 feet in diameter.  After being stuck in traffic for over an hour, we visited the National Monument, a huge bronze monument built in tribute to the soldiers who gave their lives during the Communist insurgency of the 1950’s.  It was designed by Felix De Weldon, who also designed the Iwo Jima monument.  Photo stop at  Merdeja Square/Independence Square where I saw historic buildings surrounding the cricket green and the British-style Sultan Abdul Samad Building.   Went to the Grand Season Hotel for a buffet luncheon.  It was okay.  Thirty minute drive to Petronas Twin Towers to shoot photos from the ground.  One tower was built by a Japanese consortium,  the other tower was built by a South Korean consortium.     It is 10 inches out of level.  Near the Golden Triangle, spent thirty minutes at the Karyaneka Handicraft center to shop for pewter, crystal, glass and textiles.  The prices were high and I did not buy anything. Rode to the top of the needle-like Kuala Lumpur Tower and spent twenty minutes enjoying 360 degree views and taking pictures. 

National Monument, a huge bronze monument built in tribute to the valiant soldiers who gave their lives during the Communist insurgency of the 1950’s.  It was designed by Felix De Weldon, who also designed the Iwo Jima monument.   It is the world's tallest bronze freestanding sculpture grouping.  The monument was inspired by the Marine Corps War Memorial in the United States.  

Photo stop at  Merdeja Square/Independence Square. Saw historic buildings surrounding the cricket green and the British-style Sultan Abdul Samad Building.   

Building along Independence Square.  Photo stop at  Merdeja Square/Independence Square. Saw historic buildings surrounding the cricket green and the British-style Sultan Abdul Samad Building.   The clock tower is forty meters high and the domes are copper.

Queen Victoria's Fountain in front National Textile Museum is the striped building in the back.

KL Tower  1381 feet.  7th tallest free-standing tower.

Petronas Towers has side-by-side twin spires that resemble a pair of rockets connected by a two-story suspension bridge between the 41st and 42nd floors.  It is the world's tallest twin skyscraper.  Built on the world's deepest foundations, veering from 197 to 374 feet.  Towers have 88 floors.  Tower 1 on the left, was built by a Japanese consortiums.  Tower 2 on the right was built by a South Korean consortium.  Two companies were used to meet the six year construction deadline set by the Malaysian government.  Construction included super high-strength reinforced concrete which reduces expense and sway, but makes the building twice as heavy.  The double decker bridge is the highest two-story bridge in the world.  It is not attached to the buildings but slides in and out.  

Karyaneka Handicraft Center

Rode to the top of the needle-like Kuala Lumpur Tower and spent twenty minutes enjoying 360 degree views.  

Kuala Lumpur from the Tower.

View from KL Tower.

View from KL Tower in Malaysia.

KL tower is the seventh tallest telecommunication tower in the world.  Officially completed in 1996.

View from Kuala Lumpur Tower in  Malaysia. 

FACEBOOK Our day in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was cloudy and a bit rainy at times. Very lucky as far as weather has been concerned on this trip. Stopped by Kuala Lumpur’s Blue Mosque (capacity 24,000 worshippers) and the National Monument (bronze statue honoring soldiers who died). Felix de Weldon who created the Iwo Jima monument was also the designer of the National Monument. Looked around Independence Square with some historical buildings nearby; Sultan Abdul Sanad Building (now Ministry of Information), K.L. City Gallery, National Textile Museum, Queen Victoria’s Fountain and the Royal Selangor Club. Stopped for pictures of the Petronas Twin Towers, which were the tallest buildings in the world when they were built. We went to the Karyaneka Handicraft center and ended our day at the Kuala Lumpur Tower (1381 feet tall) for 360-degree views of Kuala Lumpur. 

This picture is of the Petronas Twin Towers. When the towers were built they were the tallest buildings in the world and currently rank seventh tallest. It has eighty-eight floors. The Malaysian government set a deadline that construction must be done in six years. For that reason, two consortiums were hired - one for each tower. A Japanese consortium built one tower and South Korea built the other. The double decker sky bridge on the 41st and 42nd floor is the highest two-story bridge in the world. The bridge is not attached to the building, but slides in and out as the buildings sway. This is a thriving city with all that goes with it, including lots of traffic.