Day 2: KL tour

🏫 Tour of KL: Tugu Negara (War Memorial), Istana Negara (King’s National Palace), Perdana Botanical Garden, Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square), Sultan Abdul Samad Building (British Colonial administration buildings), Parliament of Malaysia, China Town, Cooking class and Dinner at UOW Malaysia
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I learned that Malaysia operates as a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth, with a unique system where the king is elected every five years from hereditary rulers. The historical layers of Portuguese, Dutch, British and Islamic influence were evident in architecture and governance structures. The Parliament consists of an Upper House senate with 44 seats for experts selected by the King and 26 state-elected seats. The key issues in the lower house revolved around budget with roads, infrastructure, and project delays being main topics.
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A highlight was the cooking class at UOW Malaysia with Chef Hamirudin and Shazana, and observing Malaysia’s modern educational facilities and the school’s commitment to sustainability and global partnerships.
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The Parliament visit was a good demonstration of SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions). SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) was relevant during discussions on urban planning and flooding challenges in parliament.
Solar panels at the parliament building reflected SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy)
The UOW Malaysia was an impressive example of SDG 4 (Quality Education)
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Dataran Merdeka was an unusual showcase of Malaysia’s rich cultural blend such as European Tudor-style buildings alongside Islamic design elements. It was surprising that the Royal Selangor Club only allowed women in 2023, highlighting lingering gender norms. The nearby river of life was meant to highlight KL’s revitalised waterfront, however the mist jets over the polluted concrete channel more closely demonstrated the “ideas but not the implementation”.
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The parliamentary speeches revealed the complexity of infrastructure planning and trade challenges in Malaysia. It was clear that budget constraints, political barriers and systemic issues make it difficult to get funding for basic capital investment, infrastructure, maintenance, natural disaster recovery and innovation.Læs mere