Kuala Lumpur has been listed among the world’s best holiday destinations for 2024 by ‘Which’, a UK non-profit organisation for consumers. The capital city of Malaysia has been ranked at number 18th in their annual listings.
Kuala Lumpur managed an overall city score of 75 per cent, scoring four stars for ‘food and drink’, ‘accommodation’, ‘shopping’ and ‘value for money’ criterias (star ratings from one to five).
For the criteria of ‘cultural sights and tourists attractions’, Kuala Lumpur attained three stars and scored two stars for ‘ease of getting around’ and ‘lack of crowds’ criterias.
Sydney comes out at the top spot, while Chicago is recommended, ahead of New York and Los Angeles, as the best city in the United States.
There are also a number of cities from the Asian region which were listed in the World’s Best Holiday Destinations.
The other Asian cities that fared better than Kuala Lumpur were Kyoto (4th), Singapore (5th), Tokyo (8th), Bangkok (12th) and Ho Chi Minh City (17th).
Chart by Daily Mail UK
The organisation asked more than 1,800 respondents to rate their experiences of world travel outside of Europe over the past three years. Locations were marked on seven separate criteria, including the quality of food and drink, cultural sights and tourist attractions, ease of getting around and value for money. A city score was then calculated based on a combination of overall satisfaction and likeliness to recommend the destination.
Rory Boland, Editor of Which? Travel, said: ‘The top-rated cities in our latest survey may be wildly different, but they all have one important thing in common – they offer visitors a feast for the senses, with a fantastic array of cultural sights, excellent food and stunning scenery combining to create that undeniable “wow” factor.
Other Asian cities in the list that finished below Kuala Lumpur were Hong Kong (19th) and Hanoi (23rd).
Las Vegas, a popular tourist destination renowned for its casinos and entertainment scene, suprisingly took the bottom spot.
Kuala Lumpur City has been recognised in many world’s best listings in the recent years including InterNation’s Best Cities for Expats (8th) last year and Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2023: Eat.
Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar will be installed as Malaysia’s king from January 31, 2024, the first time he will be holding the post.
The announcement was made in a statement issued by the Keeper of the Royal Seal Syed Danial Syed Ahmad on October 27, 2023 after the country’s nine sultans met at the Conference of Rulers to vote on who among them would be the next Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA), for the next five years.
Sultan Ibrahim is the 5th Sultan of Modern Johor. He ascended to the throne following the death of his father, Sultan Iskandar in 2010.
Things to know about Sultan Ibrahim
Military training
Sultan Ibrahim is a fully trained army, navy and air force officer and has also studied diplomacy and international relations. After finishing his high school, he was sent to Pusat Latihan Tentera Darat (PULADA) in Kota Tinggi for basic military training. He also received military training in the US–at Fort Benning, Georgia and later at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Sultan Ibrahim also attended the American Special Forces Green Beret and Pathfinder Course and completed 19 parachute jumps eight of which were night jumps. He earned the prestigious Green Beret and wings. His Royal Highness is also a member of the SEAL (sea and land) team and an honorary member of KOMPASUS the Indonesian red beret after making successful parachute jumps in Bandung.
Tanjong Pagar train’s last journey
Sultan Ibrahim had the honour of driving the last train from Tanjong Pagar railway station, having received lessons from Chief Locomotive Inspector Hasnol Azahari Aman of Keretapi Tanah Melayu to enable him to do this.
On its last journey of 30 June 2011, the train ferried some 600 passengers which included members of Johor royalty and officials, current and former KTM staff, KTM train enthusiasts and journalists.
He stated that he wished to do this as his grandfather, Ismail of Johor had opened the causeway between Singapore and Malaya in 1923, and that it was appropriate that he should drive the last train out of the station.
Founder of Kembara Mahkota Johor
The Kembara Mahkota Johor is the brainchild of Sultan Ibrahim himself then the Crown Prince (Tunku Mahkota) of Johor, due to his desire to meet with fellow Johoreans and provide charity to the poor.
It is an annual royal motorcycle expedition participated by a group of motorcyclists led by Sultan Ibrahim himself, travelling over hundreds of kilometers through all 10 districts of Johor.
Banned vape
Sultan Ibrahim issued a decree banning vape in Johor effective 1 January 2016. The purposes of the ban is for the sake of the health of the Johor state residents. Kelantan and Terengganu followed soon after.
Public weekend on Fridays & Saturdays
On 22 November 2013, Sultan Ibrahim decreed that Johor will observe its weekend to Friday and Saturday, to enable Muslims in the state to attend their Friday prayers, effective 1 January 2014.
Business ventures
The Johor royalty is involved in a variety of businesses, including a power plant and property development in Johor.
“Let’s be honest here, we are a constitutional monarch. I have to earn my living like everyone else. I cannot depend on my allowances. I must earn a living, like ordinary Malaysians,” the Sultan said in an interview.
Family
Sultan Ibrahim married Raja Zarith Sofiah, daughter of Sultan Idris Shah II of Perak on 22 September 1982. They have six children:
Tunku Ismail Idris Abdul Majid Abu Bakar (born 30 June 1984). He was appointed as the Crown Prince upon Sultan Ibrahim’s accession in January 2010.
Tunku Tun Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah (born 8 April 1986). She was bestowed the title Tun by Sultan Ibrahim in 2012. She married Dato’ Dennis Muhammad Abdullah (né Dennis Verbaas), a former semi-professional footballer from the Netherlands, on 14 August 2017.
Tunku Idris Iskandar (born 25 December 1987) the Tunku Temenggong of Johor. He was appointed as the Regent of Johor during the absence of his father on 29 September 2012.
Almarhum (Late) Tunku Abdul Jalil (5 July 1990 – 5 December 2015) the Tunku Laksamana of Johor
Tunku Abdul Rahman (born 5 February 1993) the Tunku Panglima of Johor
Tunku Abu Bakar (born 30 May 2001) the Tunku Putera of Johor
Unique vehicle number plate
Sultan Ibrahim has a penchant for cars and won multiple tenders for sought after vehicle number plates.
In 2012, Sultan Ibrahim’s bid of RM520,000 helped him top 9,999 other bidders including the Yang di-Pertuan Agong at that time, in the bid for the car number plate WWW 1.
In July 2016, the Ruler bought the “F1” number plate for RM836,660 before splashing another RM990,000 for the “V1” plate just a month later.
On February 8, 2017, he obtained the ‘VR46’ plate, reportedly as a fan of professional Italian motorcycle racer Valentino Rossi, acquiring it for a price of RM55,002.20.
Sultan Ibrahim recorded another history after securing the ‘FF1’ vehicle number plate with a bid of RM1.2 million in June 2023.
Owned the world’s most expensive mack truck
His Royal Highnness owns a custom-made Super Liner, and was estimated to cost around RM1.4 million, making it among the world’s most expensive.
The rig contains a host of features including a six-camera CCTV system, two flat screen TVs, a stone-topped kitchen area, double bed and seats with 72,000 stitches of gold thread.
The truck also has a solid gold tiger as its hood ornament.
British roots
Sultan Ibrahim’s father Sultan Mahmud Iskandar, married Josephine Ruby Trevorrow, in 1956 after meeting her in Britain while completing his studies.
She adopted the Muslim name Kalsom Abdullah after her marriage and gave birth to Sultan Ibrahim in 1958.
On Tuesday, January 30, seven routes in the capital will be fully closed, and 13 routes will be closed in stages in conjunction with the sending off ceremony for the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
In a statement today, Bukit Aman Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department (JSPT) director Datuk Mohd Azman Ahmad Sapri, announced the full closure of Jalan Damansara to Jalan Parlimen (from the old Istana) and Jalan Sultan Abdul Halim to Jalan Parlimen, starting at 9.00am, that will be reopened in stages.
Also to be closed are Lebuhraya Sultan Iskandar to Jalan Parlimen, Jalan Kuching to Bulatan Dato’ Onn, Jalan Salahudin to Bulatan Dato’ Onn, Jalan Kuching/Jalan Sultan Ismail to Bulatan Dato’ Onn and Jalan Tun Perak to Bulatan Dato’ Onn.
The roads affected by the temporary closure at 9am, that will be reopened in stages, are Lebuhraya Sultan Iskandar to Jalan Damansara, Jalan Travers to Jalan Damansara (from Muzium Negara), Jalan Sultan Hishamuddin to Jalan Damansara (from Bulatan Hishamuddin), Jalan Tun Sambathan to Jalan Damansara, Jalan Syed Putra to Jalan Istana, Jalan Dewan Bahasa to Jalan Istana, Jalan Sungai Besi to KL-Seremban Expressway, Lingkaran Tengah/Jalan Connaught from Lebuhraya Syed Putra.
It also includes the New Pantai Expressway (NPE) from Pantai Dalam, Maju Expressway from the Salak South Toll, Kesas Highway from Sungai Besi, Kesas Highway from KL/Seremban Expressway and Sukom Interchange towards the Kesas Highway.
“JSPT Kuala Lumpur will deploy 91 senior and junior police officers for traffic control duties that day to facilitate the sending off ceremony,” he said.
Mohd Azman also advised road users to avoid the fully closed roads to prevent traffic congestion and adhere to the instructions of Traffic Police on duty at the said locations.
“Members of the public with queries or information can contact the Jalan Tun H.S Lee Traffic Police Station at 03-2071 9999 or the Kuala Lumpur JSPT Hotline at 03-20260267/69 or any nearest police station,” he added.
Al-Sultan Abdullah, who was installed as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong on Jan 31, 2019 ends his five-year reign on Jan 30.
Several roads in Kuala Lumpur will be closed from January 23 until 26 to make way for the chariot procession in conjunction with the Thaipusam celebration.
Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Allaudeen Abdul Majid said the procession will begin from Sri Maha Mariamman Temple on Jalan Tun H. S Lee on January 23, 9.00pm, and is expected to end at the Sri Subramaniar Temple, Batu Caves, Selangor on January 24, 4pm.
The road will also be closed during the Thaipusam celebration on January 25.
The police chief added that the return procession will begin on Friday, 3.00pm which will go through the same route.
“To facilitate the movement of this chariot, several main roads and surrounding streets in the city centre will be gradually closed and diverted,” he said in a press conference at the Kuala Lumpur traffic police station at Jalan Tun H S Lee.
The roads involved in the chariot procession include Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, Jalan Sultan, Jalan Tan Cheng Lock, Jalan Pudu, Jalan Tun Perak, Jalan Leboh Ampang, Jalan Munshi Abdullah, Dang Wangi, Jalan Raja Laut, Jalan Belia, Jalan Sri Amar, Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, Jalan Tun Razak, Jalan Perhentian, Jalan Ipoh Lama (Batu Lima), Jalan Ipoh (Kuala Lumpur) and Jalan Salah.
Allaudeen advises Kuala Lumpur residents and road users to avoid using the roads affected by the closure and diversions during the procession.
“Please comply with the instructions of the on-duty police officers to ensure smooth and controlled traffic conditions.”
For further inquiries or information, the public can contact the Traffic Police Station at Jalan Tun H.S Lee at 03-2071 9999 or the JSPT Kuala Lumpur Hotline at 03-20260267/69 or any nearby police station.
The curry puff is a delightful pastry loved by all Malaysians. More commonly known as the karipap, these flaky, crispy puffs are filled with savory curried potatoes, chicken, and onions, making them a heavenly and popular choice for all the right reasons!
The karipap has recently been included in the top 100 pastries in the world. Taste Atlas has officially ranked our delicious snack as the fifth-best pastry in the world.
It is a popular breakfast item or an afternoon snack which can be found at numerous stores, bars, and markets. Because of its simplicity and flavor, karipap quickly became popular outside Malaysia, especially in Thailand and Singapore. Today there are numerous versions of karipap, so instead of potato and chicken curry, it can be filled with various other ingredients such as tuna, sardines, and beef rendang.
The other four pastries that were ranked above the karipap are pastel de nata, a traditional Portuguese egg custard tart, pastel de Belém, also another type of traditional Portuguese egg custard tart, trigona panoramatos, a traditional Greek sweet pastry and bougatsa, a traditional, rustic Greek pie.
Even the popular French pastry, croissant is ranked at number eight in the list.
Trigona Panoramatos
Check out the top 20 pastries of the list by TasteAtlas.
Thaipusam is a Hindu festival celebrated on the first full moon day of the Tamil month of Thai coinciding with Pusam star. The festival is celebrated to commemorate the victory of Hindu god Murugan over the demon Surapadman using a vel, a divine spear granted by Parvati.
The festival include ritualistic practices of Kavadi Aattam, a ceremonial act of sacrifice carrying a physical burden as a means of balancing a spiritual debt. Worshipers often carry a pot of cow milk as an offering and also do mortification of the flesh by piercing the skin, tongue or cheeks with vel skewers. Devotees prepare for the rituals by keeping clean, doing regular prayers, following a vegetarian diet and fasting while remaining celibate.
Although Thaipusam is main observed in India, it is also one of the biggest event in Malaysia due to the significant Indian community in the country.
History
According to the Kanda Puranam, asuras (a race of celestial beings Surapadman, Tarakasuran and Singamukhan performed austerities to propitiate lord Shiva. Shiva granted them various boos which gave them the ability to conquer the three worlds and near immortality.
They subsequently oppressed other celestial beings including the devas and started a reign of tyranny in their respective realms. When the devas pleaded Shiva for his assistance, he manifested five additional heads and a divine spark emerged from each of them. Initially, wing god Vayu carried the sparks with fire god Agni taking over later because of the unbearable heat and Agni deposited the sparks in the Ganga river. The water in Ganga started evaporating due to intense heat and Ganga took them to Saravana lake where the sparks developed into a baby boy. The six boys were raised by handmaidens known as the Kriththikas and they were later fused into one by Parvati, thus the six-headed Murugan was born.
Parvati granted him a divine spear known as the vel. Murugan was accompanied by Virabahu who served as his commander-in-chief and eight others, who were sons bore by nine shaktis who arose from the gems of the broken anklet of Parvati, when she ran from her seat due to the heat generated by the sparks. Along with the forces of the devas, Murugan waged a war on the asuras. Murugan split Surapadman into two with his vel and the two halves transformed into a mango tree and later into a peacock and a rooster. Murugan adopted the peacock as his mount and took the rooster as his flag. Murugan is a deity associated with yogic discipline and austerities in Hinduism and is regarded by his adherents to be capable of offering mukti (spiritual liberation) to those who venerate him.
Practices
Kavadi Aattam is a ceremonial act of sacrifice and offering practiced by devotees. It is a central part of Thaipusam and emphasizes debt bondage. Kavadi (meaning “burden” in Tamil) itself is a physical burden carried by the devotee, the bearing of which is used by the devotee to implore Murugan for assistance, usually on behalf of a loved one who is in need of healing, or as a means of balancing a spiritual debt.
Worshipers may carry a pot of cow milk as an offering and also do a form of mortification of the flesh by piercing the skin, tongue or cheeks with vel skewers. Drumming and chanting of verses help them enter a state of trance and Vibuthi, a type of holy ash is spread across the body including the piercing sites.
Devotees prepare for the rituals by keeping clean, doing regular prayers, following a vegetarian diet and fasting while remaining celibate. They make pilgrimage with bare feet and dance along the route while bearing these burdens.
Celebration in Malaysia
In Malaysia, Thaipusam attracts thousands of people for the elaborate festivities at Batu Caves near Kuala Lumpur and Arulmigu Balathandayuthapani Temple, Penang.
In the capital city of Malaysia, devotees take part in the procession by accompanying a chariot bearing Lord Murugan’s statue, on the journey from the Sri Mariamman temple in Kuala Lumpur to Batu Caves in Selangor. The journey which begins at midnight covers a distance of approximately 15km and stops at Batu Caves in the morning.
Photo / IG @sigridofthesunPhoto / IG @k_az789
At Batu Caves, a gold Lord Murugan statue towers over the temple and awaits devotees looking to pray for various aspects of their lives and fulfill their vows to the deity during the celebration. In addition to the procession, devotees climb up all 272 of the famed concrete steps to the main temple cave, bearing their offerings and kavadi.
It is said that well over a million people visit the Batu Caves during Thaipusam, so be prepared for a very crowded, hectic and sometimes even claustrophobic experience.
It is a unique celebration in Malaysia as it is not only observed by Indians. Other communities may also join in the prayers to Lord Murugan, and for those who are not a Hindu celebrates the diversity and differences among Malaysians.
Three Malaysian women have been featured in Forbes’ newly launched “50 Over 50: Asia 2024” list, which showcases 50 inspirational women over the age of 50 from across the Asian region.
The three outstanding Malaysian women are Tan Sri Datuk Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria, executive director of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Secretariat; Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, local lawyer-activist; and Tunku Mona Riza Tunku Khalid, a renowned film director and founder of film production house Current Pictures.
According to Forbes, the women of the third annual “50 Over 50: Asia” list hail from 14 countries and territories, encompassing over two dozen work sectors including fashion, pharmaceuticals, and finance, reported Bernama.
Tan Sri Datuk Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria
Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria, 65, who was appointed the executive director of the Apec Secretariat in 2019, was the first woman to lead the 21-member inter-governmental economic advisory body.
Previously, she spent a decade shaping Malaysia’s contributions to the global economy, serving as deputy secretary-general, and then secretary-general and lead trade negotiator for the country’s international trade and industry ministry, as it was then known.
She has also represented the region at the World Economic Forum and was previously a non-executive director of RHB Bank Bhd.
Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan
Ambiga Sreenevasan, 67, is a prominent Malaysian lawyer who holds a law degree from the University of Exeter, UK, and a human rights advocate, have earned the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Medal of Honor and the Gandhi Memorial Trust Public Service Award.
As the second female president of the Malaysian Bar Council, she orchestrated the influential “March for Justice” and chaired Bersih 2.0, advocating free and fair elections, it said.
A founding member of the Women’s Aid Organisation, she now serves as president of the Pure Life Society, a charitable home for orphans and the underprivileged.
Tunku Mona Riza Tunku Khalid
Tunku Mona Riza, 57, won Most Promising Director for “Redha” at the Malaysia Film Festival 2017. Inspired by a true story, the film depicts the challenges of raising an autistic child and was selected as the country’s entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards. Riza established her production house, Current Pictures, in 1999.
Her 2023 film, “Rain Town,” is Malaysia’s first Chinese-language film by a Malay female director.
Premiering in February 2024, it was screened at last year’s Vancouver Asian Film Festival and the International Film Festival of India in Goa.
To know more who is on the Forbes’ 50 Over 50: Asia 2024 list, check the Forbes website.
Chinese New Year is just around the corner and many Chinese families are preparing to celebrate one of the biggest days in the Chinese calendar. Food is very important in the celebrations for the Chinese community, and in particularly in Malaysia, Yee Sang is one of them. In fact, the culture of Yee Sang tossing is known to be originated from Malaysia.
If you’re looking for the special yee sang creations by restaurants around Kuala Lumpur, check out the list below.
The city has always been great with events of all types. Whether it is an art exhibition, performances or crafts market, there’s creative events organised by amazing people around. Check out some of the exciting ones which were arrranged for 2024
Events & things to do in KL & Selangor – March 2024
