Detailed review by jl132
jl132
Manchester, United Kingdom98%
The Batu Caves in Malaysia is an Indian temple inside a cave. In order to come to the temple you must climb 272 steps. The temple is one of the most important temples for the Hindus.
It’s a cave that is four hundred meters long and about one hundred meters high. The entrance to the cave is located at a considerable height. The cave is an Indian temple used by the Hindus. The first cave temple was built in 1891 and the staircase with 272 steps came in 1920. The big statue next to the stairs is about 45 meters high and was completed in 2006.
Batu Caves is located about thirteen kilometers from the centre of Kuala Lumpur. You can get there from the Golden Triangle in Kuala Lumpur with a taxi to Batu Caves. The ride it will cost about 20 to 25 Ringgit. This is between 4 to 6 pounds.
It is best to visit Batu Caves on a weekday. On weekends many Malaysians are free and there are usually many more tourists. I myself went on a weekday and it was very quiet, so you can view everything at your leisure. The Batu Caves is open daily from 7.00 until 21.00 hours.
Every year there is in the Thaipusam festival. The party has to do with the youngest son of Shiva and the unification of Pusan and Brihaspati stars. This festival is annually held in January or February. Every year more Hindus go to the Thaipusam festival. In 2006 there were more than a half million and this was one of the largest festivities of Hindus in history. On the day of the festival participants will fast on the day itself and there are spectacular parades and parties. The Thaipusam festival is probably best known because participants make self-flagellation. They put themselves in a trance and then put all sorts of pins and hooks through their backs, cheeks and tongue. By doing this self-flagellation, the participants’ hope that they can enforce favours from the gods.
At the Batu Caves you will find many monkeys running around. You can either encounter them at the top and bottom of the stairs. The monkeys are macaques and they can be quite brutal. It is therefore recommended to look after your belongings. It is especially wise not to walk around with plastic bags at the Batu Caves. You can buy some food for the monkeys but also this is not recommended since they are still wild animals. Anyhow it is wise not to buy peanuts and feed the monkeys.
Besides the Macaques are more animals around. You can see bats in the cave and sometimes you see a stray cat around. In addition there are various bird species and the risk of butterflies and birds are also present. You will also find a wide variety of plants in and around the caves.
At the top of the stairs you can visit the temple and see photos of the Thaipusam festival. There are also several souvenir shops. Also you can take a picture with a snake or a different beast. This cost around 5 Ringgit. You will also see many different decorations. The temple has something unique, because it is in a cave. The cave provides a magnificent sight as you look up. Especially when the sun shines through the cave.
Batu Caves8
