10 Reasons Why It's Worth Visiting Malaysia

Malaysia is a beautiful country and a popular tourist destination. Its unique culture, incredible climate, beautiful scenery and delicious cuisine are only a few of the reasons why Malaysia is considered to be one of the best holiday vacation spots in the world.

1. Kuala Lumpur is one of the best reasons to visit Malaysia. It is the capital of Malaysia and is also known as the 'Garden City of Lights'. Its shopping complexes and malls offer a choice of traditional handicrafts as well as branded products from all over the world. The mega sales that are held annually all over the country attract shoppers from all over Southeast Asia.

2. Malaysia offers an amazing range of cuisines to suit all palates and budgets. The different cuisines available include hot and spicy Malaysian dishes, exotic Chinese delicacies, rich Indian cuisine and a multitude of Continental dishes.

3. Sightseeing in Malaysia is a treat in itself. The country has a plethora of exotic destinations that attract tourists from all over the world, including islands, beaches and forests. Some wonderful places worth visiting are Langkawi, Cherating, Port Dickson, Labuan Island, Tioman Island, Pangkor Island and Redang Island.

4. Malaysia is famous for its beautiful heritage sites like the Churches in Malacca and the Malacca Museum, the Mahamariamman Temple in Kuala Lumpur and the Snake Temple in Penang.

5. For those who love exploring the outdoors, it would be worth visiting the Cameron Highlands, Frasers Hill, Berjaya Hills and Genting Highlands.

6. Malaysia's natural beauty is at its most resplendent in the rainforests. The best places to see the splendour of the rainforests would be Kinabalu Park, Kuala Selangor Park, Endau-Rompin and the Mulu national park.

7. A typical tour for lovers of wildlife would include a trip to the Botanical Garden and Bird Park, in addition to the Bukit Jambul Reptile farm.

8. Accommodation in Malaysia spans a wide range of hotels and resorts that appeal to all tastes and budgets. There are high end five star facilities such as the Taj Resort in Langkawi, Berjaya Time Square in Kuala Lumpur, Bayview Beach Resort in Penang and the Berjaya Langkawi Resort, to name a few. Among the hotels that offer good deals are the Holiday Inn Malacca, the Andaman in Langkawi, Citrus Hotel in Kuala Lumpur and the Dorsett Penang.

9. Getting around Malaysia is not difficult. and visitors can travel through the region via air or road. One of the best transport options open to travellers are the car rentals from places like Hertz and Hawk that can take you anywhere in Malaysia. Luxury buses are also available between Malaysia and Singapore.

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A Famosa Melaka

A Famosa Fortress

The gate "Porta de Santiago" is all what's left of the mighty fortress built by the Portuguese invaders in 1511. As you all know, the Portuguese were looking for new trading routes to India. During their quest they set foot and established outposts on Macao, Goa and Melaka.

To fight off the army of the Sultan of Melaka, the Portuguese built this fortress around a natural hill near the sea.

However one century later in 1641, the Portuguese outpost was conquered by the Dutch East Indian Company (abbreviated in Dutch to VOC: Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie).

The Dutch started fortifying the A Famosa fortress and completed their work in1670. That's the date you will see written on the Porta de Santiago, next to the logo of the East Indian Company.

Unfortunately, in the early 19th century the Dutch handed A Famosa over to the British to keep it out of the hands of French colonizer Napoleon. The British had no intention of maintaining the fortress and ordered its destruction.

Only thanks to the founder of Singapore: Sir Stamford Raffles who happened to visit Melaka, the English stopped demolishing the entire fortress and left the Porta de Santiago untouched.

The fortress is in walking distance of the historical center of Melaka and deserves a visit if you want to know more about the history of Melaka and modern Malaysia.

A Famosa golf resort and A Famosa water world

Although Melaka is a renowned UNESCO world heritage site, the Malaysian Tourism Board does little to uphold the picturesque charm of the city.

In their own words, they 'lure' tourists with high priced attractions like a golf resort and a water world theme park. The only historical value in these attractions is the misleading use of the words "A Famosa".

Having said so, the golf course is set upon scenic waterways and has even a landing strip for light aircrafts and helicopters: for the rich and famous.

A Famosa Water World Theme Park is the only water theme park of its kind in the southern region of Malaysia.

Although it comprises slides and pools of every kind, you wonder why the Malaysian Tourist Board just has to add a theme park to a city that can lure tourists just because of it's old charm and history...

A Famosa Melaka summarized

A Famosa shows you 2 sides of how Malaysia looks at tourism in their country:

• A Famosa is the oldest remaining building in Melaka and entire Asia,
• A Famosa is also used to brand the latest Malaysian tourist attractions in Melaka: a great golf course for the rich and famous and the only Water World theme park in the south of Malaysia.

Although Melaka is an UNESCO world heritage site, A Famosa illustrates how history is only a signboard to lure tourists to Malaysia's most modern tourist attractions.

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Melaka A'Famosa Resort Animal Safari And Cowboy Town

Melaka is a worth destination to visit for families. One of the main attractions that I would like to introduce when you are in Melaka is the famous A'Famosa Resort Animal Safari and its unique Cowboy Town.

Situated on a 1300-acre site in Alor Gajah, surrounded by rolling hills and a lush countryside of Melaka, A'Famosa is a getaway which will leave you totally refreshed and rejuvenated.

One of the best things about A'Famosa is its strategic location off the North-South Highway- just half an hour's drive from historic Melaka city, 45 minutes from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and about an hour from Kuala Lumpur. The resort is also extremely popular with Singaporeans as it only takes two hours by road to go there from the Lion City. An alternative mode of travel is via rail, alighting at the Tampin Railway Station which is just a 10-minute taxi ride away.

Hold tight, as you sit in the caged truck. The Animal Safari is about to begin. Melaka's Animal Safari is the only safari park in Malaysia, where you can see wild animals like tigers, lions and sunbears closed-up in the open as the truck stop right next to them. Barbary sheep, deer, camels, zebras, giraffes and ostriches roam freely in the open. There are also elephant and bird shows to entertain you, to add to the adventure, you can enjoy elephant, camel and pony rides. At the walk through area you will see Tanzanian flamingos, black and white swans, Australian Bennett wallabies, North American raccoons and the Malaysian black and white tapirs. Don't miss the dairy farm that house fluffy chicks, kittens, puppies and ducks.

Only in the evening, Melaka's only Cowboy Town comes alive. There are food outlets serving local and western food, live bands and children's park. At the open area features cowboys and Apaches in stunt acts and trick horse riding. For lasting memory, have your family photo taken at the Digital Photoshop Conner in Cowboy outfit or get your face painted. If you are tired, try treating yourself for a Thai body massage and foot reflexology. Cowboy Town shopping village offers a variety of arts & crafts as souvenirs for you to bring home. Also look out for the magnificent and stunning fireworks displays as it brighten the black sky.

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The Cradle of Malay Language-A Tale of Two Islands

From the day the Portugese conquered Malacca, the role of a centre for Malay language and culture gradually shifted back to its place of birth in Riau.

It was like a twist of fate that pushed Riau into a more important political role as well after decades of obscurity as an appendage of the Malacca Sultanate.

And the tale begins with Bintan, a larger island in Riau.

Rise and Fall of Bintan

The royal fugitive Sultan Mahmud Shah of Malacca, not ready to give up on his kingdom, formed a resistance base in Bintan from which he managed to lay siege on Malacca but in vain. The Portugese attacked and defeated him in Bintan. He died an exile in Sumatra.

Mahmud Shah's son founded the Johore Sultanate, which came to cover the Riau archipelago as it grew into an empire. Bintan was once the capital of Johore.

But it was outsiders - Bugis aristocrats from Sulawesi-who made Bintan prosperous. The Bugis made use of an internal strife to become dominant in Johore, they developed Bintan into a powerful international trading port of the Malay language speaking world.

In fact, Bintan even became a competitor of its previous master Malacca and Jakarta which had come under control of Dutch colonists.

Clash of interests led into tensions between Dutch and Bugis, escalating into a warfare during which the Bugis hero Raja Ali fell in battle.

Eventually the Dutch took over Bintan along with Riau, spelling its decline.

Bintan Today

A visitor to Bintan observes two worlds on it.

" Bintan leads a double life...Bintan Resort...is a colony of Singapore in all but name, full of expensive resorts and manicured lawns," is the description of Wikitravel,"...Separated by checkpoints and armed guards, the southern half of the island is 'real' border town Indonesia,home to electronics factories, fishing villages, many prostitutes and some low-key beaches."

Under Indonesia's new autonomy law, Riau's allocation from the central government has increased tremendously. So theoretically, Bintan is no longer poor.

Besides, a legacy lives on.

Penyengat

Accessible by boat from Bintan is a small island called Penyengat, long time associated with the Bugis people and shrine of Raja Haji.

Raja Haji's story did not end with his death. The tale continues on Penyengat.

Raja Haji had a son, Raja Ahmad who was only 11 years old when he died. Raja Ahmad was a keen student of history and a poet. He drafted an epic of his Bugis ancestors involvement in the Malay world.

25 years after the death of Raja Haji, a son called Raja Ali Haji was born to Raja Ahmad. Raja Ali Haji grew up to be an accomplished historian and scholar who completed the epic drafted by his father. The result of this father and son's teamwork is Tuhfat al-Nafis, an invaluable source for history of Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and Sumatra.

Lauded by Encyclopedia Britannica as one who "led a renaissance in Malay letters," Raja Ali Haji also produced his own literary writings which included the first grammar book on Malay language and his famous couplets.

A daughter of Raja Haji, Raja Hamidah became the fourth wife of the Sultan of Johore. Her royal husband presented her with Penyengat island as a wedding gift. She was an influential figure entrusted with the royal insignia which empowered her to enthrone the next Sultan.

In effect, Raja Haji's progeny made Penyengat island blossom into a centre of government, Islamic religion and Malay culture - long enough to contribute to the purest Malay language in Riau, leaving behind a legacy that the Dutch can never take away.