WeiWei & Allison's Blog: 05/20/08

Istana Negara

Istana Negara or National Palace is the official residence of His Majesty, Yang Dipertuan Agong ( King ) of Malaysia. It stands on a 28 acre site, located at a commanding position on the slope of a hill of Bukit Petaling overlooking the Klang River, along Jalan Syed Putra.

Another royal residence of Yang Dipertuan Agong is Istana Melawati in Putrajaya.

Tugu Negara ( National Monument )

Tugu Negara or National Monument is a sculpture that commemorates those who died in Malaysia's struggle for freedom, principally against the Japanese occupation during World War II and the Malayan Emergency, which lasted from 1948 until 1960. It is located in the Federal capital, Kuala Lumpur. The Malaysian Houses of Parliaments is situated near the monument.

The monument depicts a group of soldiers holding the Malaysian national flag, the Jalur Gemilang, aloft. Each of the bronze figures symbolizes leadership, suffering, unity, vigilance, strength, courage and sacrifice.

Every year on July 31, Hari Pahlawan ( Heroes Day ), the Yang Dipertuan Agong, the Prime Minister and heads of military and the police would pay their respects to the fallen heroes by laying garlands at the monument.

Dataran Merdeka ( Merdeka Square )

The Dataran Merdeka or ( Merdeka Square ) is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is situated in front of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building. It was here the Union Flag was lowerd and the Malayan Flag hoisted for the first time at midnight on August 31 1957. Since then, Dataran Merdeka was the usual venue for the annual Hari Merdeka Parade ( National Day Parade ).

Kuala Lumpur Tower

The Kuala Lumpur Tower (offically known as Menara Kuala Lumpur, refered later as KL Tower ) is a tall tower located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was built in 1995. It is used for communication purposes and features an antenna that reaches 421m which currently makes it the fifth tallest tower in the world. The roof of the pod is at 335m. The rest of the tower below has a stairwell and an elevator to reach the upper area, which also contains a revolving restaurant, providing diners a beautiful view of the city. Races are organised yearly where participants race up the stairs to the top. The tower becomes as the Islamic falak observatoryto look for the cresent moon to mark the beginning of Muslim month of Ramadhan, Syawal and Zulhijjah to celebrate fasting month of Ramadhan, Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Hari Raya Aidiladha.

Petronas Twin Towers

The Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia are the world's tallest twin buildings. Tower 2 was built by the South Korean multinational Samsung Engineering & Construction and Tower 1 by Hazama Corporation of Japan. They were the the world's tallest buildings from 1998 to 2004 if measured from the level of the main entrance to the structural top, the original height reference used by the US-based Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat from 1969 ( three additional height categories were introduced as the tower neared completion in 1996.

Kuala Lumpur Bird Park

Kuala Lumpur Bird Park is a popular tourist attraction in Malaysia. It is located adjacent to the Perdana Lake Gardens of Kuala Lumpur. This Bird Park houses have more than 5000 birds ( or more than 50 species ) of birds in an enclosed aviary. Out of these 5000 birds, 90% are local birds and 10% were imported from overseas. The size of this bird park is around 7-16 hectares.

Activities

Bird-watching is a common activity here where the flora and the fauna is rich but yet mysteriously hides the birds from the naked eye. To watch the birds, one might need binoculars. The Kuala Lumpur Bird Park has earned the reputation among those who are keen on the study of birds in their natural habitat. Some of them include research scientists who monitor bird nests for the study of behavioral patterns.